


Valence

by leonardo_the_vinci



Category: Wicked - All Media Types
Genre: Child Abuse, F/F, Family Issues, Heavy Angst, Hurt/Comfort, I promise it's not all doom and gloom, Idiots in Love, Implied Childhood Sexual Abuse, Mutual Pining, Realistic Sibling Relationships, elphaba says fuck, emetophobia tw for chapter 2, have i mentioned that i fucking hate frex, it feels wrong to add a humor tag but there are jokes in here, neurodivergent elphaba, that got dark fast i'm so sorry
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-06
Updated: 2021-02-11
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:42:32
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Underage
Chapters: 11
Words: 34,120
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26749693
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/leonardo_the_vinci/pseuds/leonardo_the_vinci
Summary: “Whatever happens,” Galinda declared, “I promise that I won’t let you get arrested.”“And I, the same,” the green girl smiled, and softly brushed her thumb along the blonde's cheekbone. “I suppose you’re not opposed to ah… a small bit of trickery, misdirection, general mischief? Perhaps a shenanigan or two?”Certainly, There's Nothing More Platonic than Inviting One's LongtimeCrushRoommate to One's Home for the Celebration of One's Birthday or: How Elphaba Learned Several Mildly Important Personal Truths while Desperately Ignoring Her Feelings
Relationships: Elphaba Thropp/Galinda Upland
Comments: 66
Kudos: 91





	1. Depend

**Author's Note:**

> *slaps fic on table like a big mafia man with his money* just pretend it hasn't been over a year :)
> 
> anyways *hand you gelphie content* *hands you gelphie content* *hands you gelphie content * *h

Galinda awoke one fine spring day to frantic murmuring and flying garments whizzing around her bed. Snaking her arms behind her head, she sat up and quizzically turned to her roommate, who was in the process of shoving every book she'd ever owned into her ratty old suitcase.

"You're… actually going back?" A rare occurrence, given that Elphaba's father usually only ever sent for Nessa whenever holidays rolled around. Elphaba paused in her attempt to cram two books into a one-book-wide space and grimaced.

"Father has requested that I accompany Nessa on her journey home this week. He says he wishes to celebrate my birthday, given that it falls right in the middle of this little break Morrible's granted us. However, I know him, and that sentiment is bullshit." She sat roughly on the end of her bed. "You said you'd be staying here, correct?"

Notwithstanding the fact that she'd just been granted knowledge of Elphaba's birthday, Galinda nodded. "That's what I planned, yes.” Elphaba grimaced, suddenly looking quite awkward.

“And you’re not planning on doing much, correct?”

“Nothing at all, really. I’m going to be bored, but at least it’ll be over quickly.” _Yeah, right,_ her conscience griped. _Two weeks’ll just fly by._ She sighed and laid back down, turning toward her roommate with one lazy blue eye. The green girl flicked her gaze around the room, determined not to make eye contact, and wrenched her mouth open.

“I have a… a request. I know it’s a bit much to ask on such short notice, but–“

“You want me to come with you.” Elphaba sat, stunned, but stammered out an affirmative.

“Th-that was the idea, yes. You’ll have to prepare yourself for some grade-A fuckery—“

“And you’ll have to stop cursing like a sailor.”

“—shut up. Ah… grade-A fuckery… yes. Um.” Averting her eyes and blushing faintly, Elphaba spoke quietly to her knees. “I would a…appreciate it greatly if you would possibly-maybe-perhaps accompany me."

“Well, no need to be so formal,” Galinda chortled. “I’ll pack up at once! What should I bring?”

“As much as I hate to say it, bring most of your stuff. The ride is long; the hallways, dirty. With how much you care about your appearance, you’ll definitely want to change out of your garments, stained with the filth of the masses–” Galinda swatted the girl’s wildly-gesturing hand out of the air. 

“You’re riling yourself up again; don’t be so dramatic. Also, you’ve neglected to exposit: your birthday?” She broke into a wide grin. “Why didn’t I know about this sooner? Also, why didn’t I know that you’re a whole seven months younger than me!” Elphaba cringed at the realization.

“Didn’t know you could subtract so quickly,” she grumbled, attempting to deflect, but her roommate had already bounded across the room and was now sprawled on her bed, practically convulsing with interest.

“Oh, you horrendous child!” Galinda whined. This. This is why. Elphaba sighed.

“I will be an adult in less than a week. I’ll also have you know that, currently, you are the one acting childish, and I do not wish to continue this conversation any longer.” She may as well have stamped her foot and pouted.

“Ew, pessimist. Why don’t you like your birthday?” Elphaba retreated into herself.

“Why would I celebrate the inevitable marching of time slowly consuming my mind and body to the point of senility? What point is there in living when I can no longer distinguish between the components of my world? Getting older is such a hassle. My accomplishments will begin early and end when I am still young. Frankly, there’s nothing to look forward to in the later years.” A bald-faced lie, but a convincing one.

“ _Ew, pessimist._ ” Galinda shuddered at her roommate’s grave monotone, but quickly began to giggle. “Well, look at me, using big words! Are you proud, Grouchy?” she sing-songed, laying her hand over Elphaba’s and intertwining their fingers. The long-suffering green girl huffed, faking irritation but in reality disguising a scratchy laugh.

“Very proud, fuckin… uhhh. Bubbles.” She flushed (at the stupid nickname, of course) but stood her ground, willing to die on that hill if need be. “Now if you’d stop bothering me about my birthday, I need to get my things in order. You start packing, too.”

“Ohhh, you’ll _really_ be impressed now! Watch this!” One day, on a whim, she had had the prescience to practice shrinking objects; now, she could reduce her mass of luggage to one even Elphaba’s little brother Shell (whose existence had been revealed in a rare sentimental moment) could manage. Suitcases full of dresses and hat boxes dwindled in size until they eventually fell into another, larger suitcase. She debated continuing the iteration for a laugh, but she had run out of suitcases. Instead, she whirled around to face her roommate and doubled over in a theatrical bow. “My performahnce, complete.”

She relished Elphaba’s small, toothy smile.


	2. Anacrusis

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> emetophobia tw! not graphic but the description of getting carsick is from personal experience and i get a bit dizzy/nauseous reading it even though i wrote it! should i be proud of that? probably not

A silent carriage.

The train rumbled monotonously along the tracks, old as time itself. Both girls sat in apprehensive stillness; Galinda fiddling with the hem of her skirt and Elphaba gripping the sides of a book to the point of her knuckles turning white.

“Did you know that the callbox was invented by an Animal?” Galinda started at the sudden break in the oppressive quiet.

“Is-is that so? Do tell,” she murmured.

“Yes, Wesmodius Crade. A particularly ambitious Frog. I guess it had to be someone with fingers of sorts, as I don’t see how hooves lend themselves to the finer inner workings of machines…” Elphaba trailed off, worrying the corner of a page. Trees stuttered past the windows in a set of slides not dissimilar to Doctor Dillamond’s precious presentations, and this is what she chose to focus on to distract from the train’s arrhythmic lurching. “Although, with webbed fingers, would that be any better?”

“Do I look like a Frog to you?” Galinda chanced a bit of sarcasm, hoping to lighten the mood.

“Of course not. I don’t find Frogs particularly at– _ahem,_ ” she suddenly dropped her thought. Scrambling to pick it up off the floor, she flushed and fumbled with her tongue for a moment. “What I… ah, _meant_ was! Y-you. Don’t look like a Frog.” The discoloration on her cheeks spread to the tips of her ears and crept dangerously close to her clavicle. Mercifully, Galinda either didn’t catch or chose to ignore the Freudian slip, leaving the green girl to marinate in her suddenly-too-warm outer layers. _Don’t speak without thinking! Ever!_ she admonished herself. The nausea she had been attempting to stave off began to mount as the train showed no indication of ever travelling in any sort of smooth manner.

She closed her book and gingerly rested her head on the window, a motion which she instantly regretted as her brain and teeth rattled about on separate axes in her skull. Having accomplished the exact opposite of what she intended, she instead moved on to the task of unbuttoning her coat without looking down. Exacerbating her symptoms was at the very bottom of her list of priorities. She feared, rightly so, that the head-pounding disorientation caused by even flicking her eyes to the ground would catapult her over the fine line of “sick but not _sick_ -sick.” Such is hell.

Her fingers began to fumble on the buttons as they filled with an uncomfortable prickling sensation. Her heart galloped unevenly, raising her temperature to unwanted levels; the tinge of her cheeks was no longer from embarrassment. Indeed, the normally flattering mauve now stood out, harshly plum, against a painfully pallid green. If only this stupid fucking coat would come off–

Galinda began to chatter mindlessly about sightseeing in Rush Margins (impossible, as nothing in Rush Margins qualified as a “sight”), but the words only added to the incomprehensible mush of sensory input that this hell-train had foisted onto Elphaba’s unfortunate vestibular system. Not caring about the remaining buttons by her feet, she slowly wriggled out of the coat and deposited it on the floor. Untying the cloak would require her to lean forward, a feat which she was unsure could be undertaken at the moment. She instead chose to sprawl as much as possible, rolling up her sleeves and placing a clammy hand between her eyes in an attempt to stave off that insidious “going-to-vomit” feeling.

She grunted a non-answer to Galinda’s “You alright, Elphie?” and immediately had to choke back… something she _really_ didn’t want to dwell on. The saliva and mucous quickly clogging her throat and sinuses accompanied by intense tingling in her hands signalled that the end was nigh. Breathing heavily through her nose didn’t help as much as she hoped it would. A further lurch from the train and the distinct sensation of entering a series of rapid turns finally catapulted her off the wooden bench seat and directly toward the rarely-utilized restroom. Normally she would ponder why this, of all things, was installed in such an old train without simply replacing the whole locomotive, but her breakfast’s inevitable encore performance weighed as heavily on her mind as it did on her stomach.

_This is fucking disgu–_ her internal monologue finally shut the hell up for once as she nearly collapsed into the toilet bowl. She slammed her eyes shut and thanked her lucky stars that she had chosen to ignore Galinda’s suggestion to “just wear your hair down today, it’ll look adorable,” although her body’s initial seizing only resulted in warm drool languidly rolling from her lips. Unsurprisingly, this not only did not quell the nausea, but also did not incite any sort of relief. For the first time, she wouldn’t have minded a good gut-punch. Thankfully (well, relatively), the train began to stutter up a small incline, and the increased jolting… hurried things along.

Galinda, in her infinite politeness, tried to block out her roommate’s vaguely cat-like noises, but decided to knock on the door after a particularly grisly cough. Granted, it didn’t sound as bad as her late Grandmaw’s death rattle, rest in peace, but the poor girl had really struggled for the past forty-five minutes. The least she deserved was a backrub.

A hasty flutter of movement nearly covered up the whimper that cut through the flimsy little bathroom door. All at once, the toilet flushed, boots clattered on the floor, and Elphaba swore meekly after presumably banging her elbow against something. She appeared a moment later, disheveled, flapping her hands violently at her sides as Galinda moved to take her arm. Deciding against interfering with whatever Elphaba was trying to do with her hands, she instead opted to wipe away the few tears on her cheeks.

“Are you all right now?” she asked softly. “I got your coat off the floor; I figured you didn’t want it to get super dirty.” The green girl nodded shakily, suppressing another retch — _aftershocks,_ she thought wryly — as she made to return to their seats. She had somehow untied her cloak in the chaos, and now bunched the cool fabric up to her eyes. Her glasses wobbled at the intrusion, but she didn’t bother to remove them. Their weight, as well as the slight twinge of the nosepiece pinching her forehead, provided a grounding effect; she no longer felt as if her head could spin off of her shoulders. A soft pressure on her back signalled that Galinda had moved onto the bench beside her. She leaned into the touch, grateful for warmth to counteract a sudden bout of shivering.

“Closer?” was the only question she felt comfortable opening her mouth long enough to ask, and Galinda (miraculously) managed to interpret it correctly. She engulfed her roommate in a gentle hug, rhythmically stroking her back until the train finally jittered to a halt. They exited the train slowly, Elphaba still moving in a wobbly fashion.

The fresh air of the platform cleared her head the rest of the way, and she fell into step with Galinda as they hauled their luggage through the station.

“I’m not looking to take any sort of transportation yet,” she declared. “Wait here for a minute, please.” And she rushed off toward the public restrooms, summoning a toothbrush et al. from her bag. Galinda was left outside to contemplate the dreary atmosphere. Her roommate returned shortly, and gestured for her to follow. “Changed my mind about transportation. We can’t walk there easily and it smells like rain. Come on.” She gestured to a carriage sitting idly near the road.

Settled at last, they thanked the driver in advance and began to rattle out of the Munchkinland hub. They chose to sit side-by-side this time, and Elphaba threw her ungainly green legs onto the seat across from them, slumping down and casually resting her head on Galinda’s shoulder.

“Tired?” Galinda remarked, at once both shocked and intensely warm from the uncharacteristic act.

“Fucking. Exhausted,” Elphaba breathed. “I’ll suck it up, I suppose. Won’t be any better when we do get there.” She heaved a sigh and relaxed further into her roommate. “Don’t let me fall asleep, I’ll probably be sick again.”

“Did that happen on the way to school as well?” Galinda asked, concern for the girl mounting quickly. Not to mention the (new!) dress she was wearing in some vague attempt at impressing Elphaba’s enigmatic father.

“Eh, don’t worry ‘bout it,” she mumbled. Her eyes slid closed.

“I’m worrying a bit,” Galinda hissed, shifting the girl to a more upright position. She took Elphaba’s jaw in her left hand and pretended to scold with her right. “Don’t throw up on my dress.” What she meant by that was really, _I hate it when you’re hurting and I can’t do anything about it_ , but the carriage driver was Right There and Elphaba had a tendency to shut down when presented with words of affirmation.

“And here I thought we were moving past materialism,” Elphaba said thinly. _And here, for a second, I thought you cared about me._ She’d never been good at deciphering verbal subtext, but as she tensed and shifted into a stiff upright position, she prayed that Galinda could pick out what she meant.


	3. Vortice

“Don’t know if he’s looking to keep people in or out, to be quite honest.” The manor loomed above the girls, its enormous oak doors dangling loosely on decrepit and rusty hinges. Elphaba explained, rushed and hushed, that they were made of “the finest steel” and her father absolutely refused to replace them. She said the same about the massive tree practically embedded into the woodwork. Such an “ancient prize of nature” could surely never be removed. Her fingers bent in fluttering air-quotes as she paraphrased, the disappointed snarl on her face deepening with each remark. “Honestly, I think he just doesn’t want to spend the effort of fixing it.”

Grumbling about shoddy workmanship, Elphaba hopped up the stairs in a practiced fashion and offered Galinda her arm. “Sorry to be so down.”

“Oh, it’s fine. I always get nervous when I have to show people my house for the first time.” She didn’t miss the raspy little _I’m not nervous_ as her roommate fervently pounded on the door. “Once, we had guests who came on horseback, but we didn’t have any place to keep them!”

“Why?” The green girl turned with a massive grin, fangs on full display. “When you bought the house, was the market not… stable?”

“Oh, we had to tie them to the gate in the rain– wait, what? No, this was only a few years ago, the housing market was–” Galinda’s eyes widened. “Ah. Very witty, O Great Comedian.” She sighed and whacked Elphaba gently on the shoulder; any tension from the carriage had dissipated with the clouds as the threat of rain had gradually lessened. The green girl twisted away with an even larger smile, barking a rough laugh. A single sunbeam broke through the canopy of trees and caught her eyes in its light, illuminating the variegated brown irises speckled with gold. _Oh,_ Galinda thought. _Pretty._ Immediately followed by _What the hell?_ and _Shush, enjoy it!_

“You’re staring,” Elphaba chuckled. “Do I have something on my face?”

“You cruel thing,” Galinda murmured. “Can I not appreciate you as you are?” She cocked her head and drew closer, tangling their hands like she had done not a day ago while packing. The sun still danced across the green girl’s face, highlighting the few persistent freckles smattered on her nose and cheeks. They were close enough to count each other's eyelashes if the want arose. Galinda felt, not heard, someone’s breath stutter. Time had perhaps stopped for a moment.

A bout of blushing ensued as a cacophony behind the doors rudely shattered the moment, and soon a dark-haired boy burst onto the massive porch and began to sprint circles around the girls.

“You! You’re back! And a friend! Who’s your friend? Hey, what’s your name?” He shrieked a blue streak as he began to crawl up Elphaba’s back. She nearly buckled with his weight, but managed to wrangle his flailing limbs under her left arm.

“My brother,” she sighed. Then she dumped him on the ground. “Introduce yourself first, Beetle-ears.”

“Shell! Pleasure!” He hung off of his sister’s bony side and torqued his upper body into a bow. “I’m ten!”

“Hello, Ten,” Galinda teased. “I’m Elphaba’s roommate.”

“Galinda, I know. She writes about you all th—” he plummeted to the ground and bounced once. Galinda was now suspecting that the Elphaba Glare (patent pending) could just be genetic, because the siblings were boring holes into each others’ heads. The luggage lay forgotten at their feet.

“That hurt!”

“Snips, snails, puppy dog tails and fucking titanium is what you’re made of, you’ll be fine.”

“Daddy would get mad if he heard you say that.” Elphaba’s jaw clenched.

“When was he ever ‘Daddy’ to you? Also, that’s why I’m talking quietly, which is a habit you should maybe pick up as well.” Conversation over. “Help with the luggage, Bug. Heh. Buggage.” She grabbed two suitcases and focused on carefully levitating a third through the doorway.

“Buggage, my–” he lowered his voice into a conspiratorial whisper, “ _ass._ ”

“Hey!” Elphaba’s lips twisted into a devious smile. “I didn’t teach you that one! Who deprived me of that experience? Tell me so I can beat the–” quiet again, “ _shit_ outta them.” Shell fell into a shrieking fit of laughter.

Their noise ricocheted off of the manor’s dark walls, and with every lit sconce they passed, the flames burned just a bit brighter. Galinda followed closely behind, grinning along with the duo, and occasionally sending small, concentrated bursts of magic to prevent the wallpaper from catching fire. They certainly resembled each other, both in energy and physicality; Shell’s ears stuck out from under his shoulder-length black hair just as his sister’s did, and despite his age, he already came up to Galinda’s chin. The timbre of his voice lacked Elphaba’s deepness and rasp, but he grinned just as wide and even walked in a similar manner. Contrary to Elphaba’s normal interactions with Nessarose, who hadn’t even shown up to greet them, the two’s metaphorical blades seemed constantly locked, building up an intense potential energy that eventually spilled out in the form of either a vicious war cry from Shell or a vigorous flapping of Elphaba’s arms. That mismatched pair of birds, feisty grackle and restless crane, fluttered down the corridor.

A lot of things in this house certainly did loom. The trio, having passed countless doors to what Elphaba said were either closets or offices, finally arrived at the base of a massive staircase. Peering to the left, Galinda audibly gasped at the enormous dining room and equally-proportioned table, the sort of thing she’d only heard about in fantasy stories.

“You could throw a whole party on that table,” she said to nobody, but heard it echo ten times over. She looked up to the ceiling, found that it wasn’t there, and looked up even further. The towering roof that had cast its severe eye on the front lawn was nearly a steeple, and she thought she may have caught sight of a flying buttress or two. “Sweet Lurline!”

“You like the table?” Elphaba had come up to her silently, and she snapped back around to face her roommate.

“The roof, actually. That’s super cool! Do you know who built this place? It’s a very distinct style of architecture, sort of a blend of… well… church stuff and regular houses. It’s not in any of my books, I’ve never seen it before.” She was speaking very fast, barely remembering that Elphaba didn’t know any architectural jargon. “Does your father have any idea what it is? Your grandfather, perhaps? Or maybe there’s a schematic somewhere? Oh, that would be fantastic! Do you have a library?” The air around both girls began to shimmer and spark, and the crystal chandelier dangling above the girls began to refract that light.

“I don’t have an answer to any of those questions, but I do indeed have a library at my disposal!” A visible pulse of excitement shuddered out of her chest, wrapping Galinda in soft green tendrils of warmth. Elphaba blushed furiously, swiping at the wisps, but they danced around her fingers in taunting patterns and moved to caress Galinda’s cheek. Both pairs of eyes grew wide. Brown and blue, earth and sky, they stood motionless in the fizz and pop of their combined excitement.

They were close again. Far too close. Pink tendrils joined the green and tucked an errant raven hair back into place. Elphaba was certain that the room had never been this hot, simply by virtue of the flagstones and celestial ceiling; however, the warmth was natural and enveloping. Her heart was pounding. Not as it had in the train, but with a steady force, compelled by some cosmic influence of the girl beside her; the girl that was exuding her own pink hue, the girl that had intertwined her right hand with Elphaba’s left and had placed her left hand gingerly on Elphaba’s collarbone which caused Elphaba’s breath to hitch, the girl that was currently closing her eyes and leaning in and _making sure that the angle of Elphaba’s hat would hide both of their mouths if someone were to encounter them and_ —

“Fabala! You’re home at last. Took you long enough.” A reedy male voice zipped through the hallways. Elphaba nearly screamed. The last thing she could’ve possibly wished for had shown up; which, as per her luck, was not surprising. She shattered away from Galinda’s side like glass, reveling in the girl’s blown pupils and the slight flush that she could never quite achieve with makeup. The glance they shared was full of so many conflicting emotions that Elphaba’s head began to spin. Steadying herself with a firm tug on her cloak, she turned and strode to the doorway. Her father appeared soon after, pushing past her and into the dining room, and bowed deeply once Galinda noticed him. She followed, worrying an entire fistful of cloth in her left hand.

He and Galinda were speaking to each other, but all Elphaba could focus on at the moment was the past few minutes. Their proximity, their energy— the room bubbled and buzzed faintly around the still-flushed tips of her ears. _Could he feel it, too?_

“Pay attention, child,” her father grumbled. _Apparently not._ “I don’t know what’s gotten into you.”

“I’ve barely been home for ten minutes,” she snapped. “Of course, I don’t see why either you or Nessa would know that.”

“We were concluding prayer. Of course, I don’t see why you would know that,” he retorted, twisting his voice up into a mocking tone. Elphaba bared her teeth in frustration and gripped her cloak even harder. “Now, child, don’t be an animal. Not today.”

Galinda looked upon the scene apprehensively, unsure of whether her intervention would help or hinder her roommate. Playing it safe, she chose to reach towards a suitcase in Elphaba’s line of sight, hoping to convey that they should get moving. And moving Elphaba got.

Faster than her father could comprehend, she whirled past him and gently tugged the luggage out of Galinda’s hand, whisking each bag into the air while she shouted, “We’re going to our room.” Frexspar barely had time to react physically, but his next words brought his daughter to a jerking halt.

“ _‘Our?’_ You’re really going to make her share a room with you here as well? Oh, the poor girl already puts up with you during the school year; give her a break. Second floor, third door on the left.” Galinda was speechless. He spoke clearly and unabashedly. All she could do was make her way to Elphaba, whose normal fire had sputtered out in an instant. The shadow cast by her hat covered most of her face, and she hid the rest behind the hair Galinda had so caringly brushed that morning. The tips of her ears had scarcely had time to return to green before they flared purple once more.

The trek to the room was entirely, painfully silent except for rapid footfalls, resulting from Galinda’s attempt to keep pace with Elphaba’s long strides. If anyone could accomplish the feat of walking emotionally, it was probably Elphaba, Galinda reasoned; although, it was extraordinarily difficult to tell exactly which emotion was being expressed at the moment. She settled on self-loathing (more often than not the correct answer), and when they reached the door, she blocked the green girl from turning the knob.

“I don’t ‘put up’ with you; you know that, right? Never once have I put up with you.” The suitcases trembled violently in the air. “In fact, you can come in right now. Screw him.”

She only received a strangled “Can’t,” in response. The door clicked open, her suitcases flew gently into the corner, and Elphaba was gone in a whirlwind of cloak and scent and sadness.


	4. Specific Gravity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> tw: weight talk, verbal abuse

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hnhgnhg sorry for this taking so long,,,, college apps have been kicking my ass  
> hope you guys enjoy though  
> pls comment i Require 1) validation and 2) that sweet sweet constructive criticism

Three prideful knocks on Galinda’s door ricocheted around in her dreams, forcing her eyes open. She stumbled to the threshold and managed to open the door with minimal fumbling around the knob. Clearing the blurriness revealed Frexspar standing nearly in the room already, hands clasped low and staring down his long nose at her.

“If you wouldn’t mind waking Fabala, I would very much appreciate that,” he said, adjusting his overcoat. “I tried to get through the door, but she barricaded it again and won’t respond to me telling her that she needs to get up. Her room’s up there.” His brow furrowed with every mention of his daughter’s actions. Galinda, still hazy, simply nodded politely. He moved aside to allow her to exit the room. “Oh, also: make sure she puts on her _actual_ clothes, not those awful pants she was wearing last night. You’re very fashion-forward, are you not? I hoped that would rub off on her, but alas–” His voice faded as she nodded quickly in assent and began to climb the rickety staircase he had pointed her towards.

The landing smelled like attic: old wood, leather, and books, reminiscent of the Shiz library. Small windows dotted the hallway, lessening the claustrophobic atmosphere. A single door stood at the end of the corridor. As she approached, she began to notice more and more cracks on the stone walls, and at one point a burn mark — desperately scrubbed to no avail — that resembled a very small hand. The door itself sported countless dents and scratches in the front, more burns all around the trim, and a beat-up handle that nevertheless seemed entirely too new compared to the regal old wood. A “Keep Out!” sign written in a child’s print hung from an impressively crooked, rusty nail at about chest-height. The whole scene resembled a circus lion’s cage, and Galinda pointedly chose not to wonder about who was the tamer.

“Elphie?” she called, sleepily. She received a response in the sound of furniture scraping wood. A dull eye, cradled with more dark bags than the two girls were carrying the night prior, peeped out from a crack. “There you are! Good morning.” Elphaba poked her entire head out like a nervous turtle, frantically scanning the hallway. “Your father sent me to get you up.” A look of disgruntled contemplation fell on the green girl’s features as she seriously debated slamming the door in Galinda’s face. “Can I come in?”

_Never mind_. Not caring about the clothes strewn around her floor or her own disheveled state, Elphaba tentatively opened the door all the way and pulled her friend into the room.

A small bed, devoid of blankets, lay crooked against the doorjamb. A desk rested against the bed, strengthening the fortification. Her suitcase, overturned and contents scattered, sat pathetically in the corner next to a pile of the missing bedcovers. She stood barefoot amidst piles of books, facing the one window opposite the door. It alone took up about half the height of the wall. She climbed onto the sill after unlatching the panes and dangled her legs over the edge. She heard a small shuffling of feet behind her as Galinda approached, leaning on the jamb. A warm hand clasped her forearm.

“Don’t fall.” She nodded. The sun shone good-naturedly in the sky, spackling her legs through the branches of the ancient tree. An enormous limb touched the side of the house mere inches below her feet, and for a moment she debated whether to scare her friend by jumping onto it. However, the hand on her arm had moved to her thigh, nudging her to the far left of the windowsill so Galinda could sit beside her.

“Don’t fall,” she echoed, gripping Galinda’s arm in the same manner. Once they were both settled, she stretched her hands to the sky, tilted her head back, and relished the clarity of the air. Despite her mood, she smiled. The suntouched leaves glinted in a conciliatory manner, slowly dissolving her apprehension about her father — at least for the time being.

The two sat in silence for a good while, sneaking the most unsubtle of glances at each other until they’d both been caught too many times to _not_ address it.

“You look… ah… nice this morning?” Elphaba fumbled, definitely not focusing on the way her friend’s sleep-tousled curls framed her face, or how the sun accentuated the natural rosiness of her cheeks.

“You look like hell, to be perfectly honest, but that’s understandable.”

Elphaba snorted. “I appreciate your candor.” Somewhere far off, a bird began to scream its morning hellos to absolutely nobody, which prompted every single other bird in the area to start a ruckus as well. Flinching at the noise, she took that as her cue to hop back into her room and firmly latch the window shut.

Galinda was kind enough to assist in the reorganization of the strewn-about furniture and belongings. They worked comfortably, communicating in brushes of skin and hand gestures, and soon the room was back to its former glory; although, perhaps “glory” was an overstatement. No amount of cleaning could alleviate the inherent oppressive atmosphere of stone walls and dark wood.

“Are you alright?” The question was, Galinda supposed, long overdue, but she’d been steeped in guilt ever since last night. Elphaba’s shoulders tensed, and she turned her back to the room, busying herself with the closet door. It creaked as she fiddled with the handle.

“Yes.” Wholly unconvincing, 3/10 performance.

“Has it always been this way?”

“Since I was born. Sometimes it’s like you’ve forgotten how this whole mess of us, this whole… _friendship_ thing… began. I told you my story; I also told you not to pity me. I didn’t ask you to come here so I could mope around and beg for sympathy, I invited you because I’m–” she cut herself off. She wasn’t sure if she could physically admit that she had been afraid.

Galinda didn’t push the issue. The last thing she needed right now was a warring family and a withdrawn Elphaba.

“You wanna get dressed?” She gently pushed past the green girl and examined the closet’s contents. They both knew that pickings were slim, but anything was better than a gifted nightshirt (originally Galinda’s, courtesy of Fiyero) and frog-print pants that ended a solid six inches above the ankle.

“What does he want?” Elphaba grumbled, waving vaguely at her clothes. Galinda raised an eyebrow.

“What do you think,” she said, flatly. Elphaba drooped, but snatched up a dress and gestured for Galinda to avert her eyes. She complied, but not before tossing Elphaba’s undergarments at her head. The green girl recoiled with a yelp.

“I don’t even _need_ this!”

“That neckline begs otherwise, Elphie–”

“Shut the fuck up!” Chuckling, she whirled around and began to remove her pajamas.

“Public indecency charges abound! Local girl stuns onlookers with–”

“No! Shut UP!” Elphaba howled, clutching her pride. “It’s too early for this.”

“Too early for what?” The door clicked shut behind Frexspar. The clamor had obstructed his footsteps. “You should have awoken an hour ago, at least.” Both girls froze in place, Elphaba wearing only the proffered undergarments and Galinda twirling another set on her finger. “Oh, look at you,” he sneered. The little man strode over to his daughter, sparing Galinda a pitying look. He sized Elphaba up, languidly reaching for her midriff and pinching her skin between his fingers.

“You’ve gained weight.” He released her from his grip; two angry spots of purple lingered near her navel. “What _are_ they feeding you at that school, I wonder. Don’t wear that dress, you look like a whore in it.” His last words faded with his speedy exit.

Elphaba’s hands drifted subconsciously to her waist.

Galinda did several double-takes between the door and her friend, mouth agape. She took in each protruding bone, each bruise from said bone encountering a hard surface, each shiver from simply standing unclothed; each layer worn not only for the comforting pressure but also out of absolute necessity in colder months.

Elphaba’s abdomen fluttered with quick, shallow breaths. Nowhere to run this time. She dropped the dress on the ground and staggered past her roommate, reaching for her other dress.

“H-he can re…really ruin a mood,” she managed to spit. Her arms worked out of habit, plucking at the fabric until it settled on her body. She clawed at the restrictive collar for a bit before giving up and slinging her cloak over her forearm.

The time for understatement was not now, Galinda reckoned, but she was still grasping at words. Thus, silent, she simply nodded her assent. Elphaba moved to leave and she followed, finally regaining her presence of mind.

“What the hell?” she whispered, tugging her friend to a halt. She scooted behind her and clasped a missed button. “He just… he just _talks_ to you like that? All the time?” Elphaba’s back tensed under her gentle hand.

“Don’t worry ah…about it,” the green girl hissed, digging her fingers into her biceps.

“Elphie, that’s _not_ normal.”

“ _Fuckin_ … I’m green. There is no _semblance_ of ‘normal.’ Y-your point?” Teeth bared, eyes burning, Elphaba bristled and jerked away from her friend’s concerned gaze.

“Saying you shouldn’t make your child a pariah in her own home isn’t a ‘point’ so much as common sense! I’ve told you time and again that ‘it’s okay, I deserve it’ is just an excuse for a-assholes to stomp all over you! It h–” Galinda broke off to stabilize her breathing. “It _hurts_ to see you like this; it hurts _me_ to see you like this, to see you just stand there and take it. You usually fight back! You usually fight back and it’s scaring me that you’re not anymore. What’s different? What’s changed? For goodness’s sake, Elphaba, _tell me_.”

The fact that both girls stood on opposite ends of the room did not hinder Elphaba from darting over to the window and scrambling out of it. Galinda screamed, mostly out of frustration but partially out of genuine terror before she remembered the tree.

“Get back here!” she pleaded. If they could just talk, Elphaba would spill the beans sooner rather than later. “I know you’re down there!” The green girl, situated halfway down her savior branch, strode back up with surprising sure-footedness; she drew herself up to her full height, splayed her hands the windowsill, leaned in, and snarled.

“I hope I’ve made it clear enough that I don’t want to talk about this right now.” Her cloak billowed in a nonexistent breeze.

“Are you _actually_ angry at me?” Galinda said incredulously. “I’m worried about you–”

“No.” Finality was one of Elphaba’s strong suits. Conciseness, less so. “You want to do the right thing. I can appreciate that. Unfortunately, both our approach to and familiarity with the situation are _quite different_.” A small growl accompanied her exhalation. “And don’t argue with me,” she snapped, as Galinda began to raise a finger, “because I will reiterate: you don’t. Know. _Shit_. You _don’t_ understand. You _couldn’t_. Your problem is that you think you get it, you… you think you can fix it all with kind words and friendship a-and a kiss on the bandage, but you don’t… don’t know wh-what it’s _like_ to–” her left hand flew up and buried itself in her hair, tugging fiercely. “To… to… to _cower_! To be unable to ask! To be in ah–a situation where the only hope you can fff– _unh!_ Hope you can f-find is to _wait_!” Her face was twisted, flushed. “To en– _dure!_ ” Her voice cracked. “To spend every day praying that he doesn’t get someone else, too!” A whisper; tears threatened to dampen the dark circles under her eyes.

Automatically, she took Galinda’s proffered hand in a death grip; a bit of wiggling saw them both back inside, seated on the floor. Elphaba wedged herself firmly into a corner, long fingers flexing with the force she was using to cocoon herself in her cloak. Its hood, rarely utilized, now obscured her features as she attempted to steady her breath. Finally, she arose, still clutching the blonde’s hand. Galinda got a better look at her then, a single shining eye glowering at her from the shadows.

They exited the room together — not that Elphaba had offered much choice in the matter — and began a trek down to the dining room; or so Galinda supposed. In response to a low rumbling noise and a gentle pull on her hand, she allowed herself to be led a short ways into another bedroom. Similarly cramped, similarly furnished, this one nevertheless gave off a much cheerier feeling. The stone walls were haphazardly painted blue, with trim decorated as clouds. The bookcase was stuffed full of wooden toys, pinecones, and a few tattered children’s books, the faded covers warmly illuminated by the sun. On the windowsill, a sickly plant drooped in its bone-dry soil.

“… told him… water…” came a murmur, and with a flick of green fingers, dewdrops flew through the window into the pot. A piece of paper, having mysteriously gained the message: WATER YOUR DAMN PLANT, affixed itself to a worn stuffed beetle on the bed.

“You care for him, and you don’t want him hurt,” Galinda finally felt comfortable enough to say. She knew, even under the hood, her roommate’s face read: _obviously_. The squeeze of her fingers confirmed it.

“Not like me. Nev’r like me.” A sigh, ragged as the bedclothes. “Nobody d’serves that.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> emotional scenes be like: *italics*


	5. Systole

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oof ouch another huge gap between updates; sorry guys  
> but that word count tho O.o it's literally almost half of the entire document i'm quite proud of myself

The dining room door lay slightly ajar, casting a slim ray of light onto the flagstones. The girls hesitated before continuing; in tandem, they looked at their clasped hands, reluctant to part. Elphaba pushed back her hood and combed back her hair, mournfully detaching herself.

“We can’t. Not here.”

“Well, I mean. Why would he be upset at a little… friendly affection?” Galinda ventured, watching for a reaction; however stoic the green girl pretended to be, she was still pretty much an open book.

Elphaba’s mouth turned into a thin line and she abruptly severed their connection, summoning her hat from the coat rack, whisking the door open, and leaving Galinda grimacing in the hall. _Didn’t think she’d do_ _that_ , she mused, _but I struck the right nerve._

“Wait, no! Elphie, I didn’t mean–” She hurried after her. She caught a bit of cloak and pulled the green girl’s head down to her. “Hey. There’s _definitely_ something going on between us, but we can talk about it later. Why would he not like us… h-holding hands?”

“No more talk about my father,” Elphaba snapped. “Actually, I’d rather like to discuss the unsaid. Unfortunately, that’s not a conversation we can have right now. Don’t bring it up again, please. It’s not safe here.”

“The ‘unsaid?’” Galinda prodded.

“I– you– _well_. Ah. We… uhh– _shit_!” Nessa, having spotted them, was rapidly approaching. Elphaba dropped her voice to a whisper and yanked the brim of her hat down with both hands. “ _You know what I’m talking about_ ,” she hissed. “ _Not twelve hours ago, to be precise–_ oh, good _morning_ , my sweet Nessarose!” An uncomfortable, sharkish grin.

“Hello, Galinda! Fabala. It _has_ been a while, hasn’t it!” She beamed at Galinda. “Have I… walked into something?” A few seconds of awkward silence passed; Elphaba looked unamused, while Galinda was severely unsure whether her impending giggles would count towards appreciating dark humor or bullying a disabled child. “You can laugh, you know.”

The green girl let out a single, humorless chuckle. “Don’t make her uncomfortable.”

“Why, dear sister? Surely my existence isn’t ‘uncomfortable?’ Oh, what a lack of empathy. I thought you’d be more amused,” Nessa bemoaned, somewhat sarcastically. “I thought if anyone _were_ to laugh, it’d be you. You know. As you are.” The sisterly-banter aspect of Nessa’s words flew clear over the point of her sister’s hat. 

“Uncalled for,” she ground out, green fingers clenched into a fist. Nessa laughed, a gratingly clear noise, and laid a hand on her sister’s forearm.

“Fabala, if I had a coin for every time I had to tell you I was joking, I’d be ruling Oz.”

“And I should rue that day,” Elphaba grumbled.

“Yes; first, I’ll outlaw grouchy sisters. Then– oh, I don’t know,” Nessa ruminated for a moment. “Probably tax reform.”

“I suppose you’re only so gung-ho about that because, as the wealthy ruler, you’re exempt from your own laws; both by means of bribery and by the sweeping of things under your proverbial rug.”

“I don’t know why I expected you’d focus more on the ‘outlawing sisters’ part. Of _course_ I’d pay taxes.”

“But would you tax yourself as you would someone of equal wealth?”

“I should hope to do so.” She squared her shoulders regally.

“Nessa, I don’t think you understand how either taxes _or_ the human tendencies of greed and corruption work. Now, leave us alone.”

Nessa pouted, but wheeled herself back to the breakfast table, muttering about how _at least she’ll actually be governor someday_. Elphaba relaxed her hands and pursued her sister, motioning to Galinda to follow suit.

“Be grateful you’ll never have to experience siblings,” she quipped, faking a shudder. “Terrible creatures.” 

“They might be less ‘terrible’ if you didn’t incite arguments, Elphie.” Galinda jostled her friend’s lanky torso. “You’re a bit combative.” She turned on her megawatt smile to avoid coming off as rude; the admonishment was quite deserved.

“No, _they’re_ combative!” The green girl turned away from Galinda’s cloying grin, unwilling to give an inch even now. She’d die on this hill, Oz-dammit all to hell!

“And _you’re_ predictable.” Well, she didn’t have a retort for that one. “Come on, Elphie, let’s just eat. You’re being so _mean_ right now, my gosh. And to me! So unlike you.”

Galinda spoke with an affectionate smile, but she was sure to carry her intent in her eyes: _eat your breakfast, you grumpus_. Elphaba sat begrudgingly next to her, sizing up a dish of raspberries with a feral glint in her eyes. They began to float surreptitiously towards the girls, but the blonde seized them out of the air before they could reach their rightful owner.

“Apologize. Come on, apologize,” she taunted, dangling a single, luscious berry in front of those hungry brown eyes. “Tell Nessa you didn’t mean to be such a…”

“Reprehensible know-it-all!” The aforementioned girl chimed in, still smarting over her sister’s verbal lashing. Said sister winced, and the magical tug on the bowl faltered. Galinda, recognizing the phrasing from a particularly chaotic sorcery seminar that — come to think of it — Morrible had never gotten around to apologizing for, cut Nessa off.

“Not quite like that, but–”

“Yes, yes, I could stand to be nicer.” She finally glanced at Galinda’s pleading face and melted a bit. “I-I’m sorry, Nessa.”

“ _There_ you go!” The blonde gestured with the raspberry once again. “Now, open!” On instinct, Elphaba parted her lips, and was promptly rewarded with one of the worst raspberries she had ever tasted in her entire life. She slammed her eyes shut against the bitterness and fumbled blindly for any liquid she could reach, planning to swallow it in one go. Crisis averted, she looked to her right only to see her friend calmly switching their cups of water.

“Wait, that’s mine!”

“Not after you drank _directly_ from mine, it’s not.”

“It’s not my fault that raspberry was shit!”

“Well, take it up with the Wizard if you’re so concerned.” The banter continued, Galinda only paying half a mind to the conversation in favor of mourning the indirect kiss they could have shared if she’d just kept her hands to herself. 

Elphaba, cheeks stuffed with raspberries (only the good-tasting ones), was attempting to launch small balls of buttered bread into Shell’s waiting mouth. The boy flopped about like a circus seal, more bread ending up down the front of his shirt than anywhere else, and Elphaba relented. With a flick of her fingers, the bread zoomed back onto his plate, each piece bonking his nose before settling down where it had been. In one uninterrupted motion, he swiped the last ball as it flew past his head, tossed it up again, and finally caught it. His sister delivered sincere applause. His other sister scowled.

“Fabala, you’re making a mess of him _and_ the table.”

“Take it up with the Wizard!” She parrotted, wriggling energetically. Nessa was decidedly unamused.

“Or, I could take it up with Father.” All action at the table ceased. He hadn’t entered the room, but Nessa’s declaration brought a chill to the air that neither other Thropp sibling had managed when talking about the man. “He’d be absolutely _delighted_ to hear about how well we’re all getting on.” The threat rang out as clear as a church bell.

Each breakfast-goer shuffled uncomfortably for a moment before Shell accused Nessa of “ruining the mood,” which began a heated debate over whether a mood so _disgusting_ should have existed in the first place. Elphaba, wearing a smug “I-didn’t-start-the-fire” look, plucked a final raspberry from the bowl with two slender fingers.

“Welcome to Colwen Grounds,” she said wryly, shooting her roommate a tiny smirk, “where breakfast is a warzone and you can never hear yourself think.”

Galinda gazed back at her with such wistfulness that an explosion of fluttering erupted in her abdomen. She chewed frantically at her berry to no avail; unless the blonde quit nailing her to her chair with the sheer adoration in her expression, Elphaba couldn’t hope to swallow.

“Oh, I wish I had siblings,” Galinda sighed, resting her curls on a bony green shoulder. Said shoulder’s owner could only hope to nod, as her brain had short-circuited.

A resounding “no, you don’t” rang out from the others, but they resumed their squabble almost immediately and soon exited the room altogether. The girls were left once again to contemplate each other’s faces.

“Why’re you starin’ at me?” Elphaba asked around the remnants of her long-chewed fruit. She really wished she had swallowed, however, because Galinda finally bit the bullet and spoke, dreamily.

“You’re just… so pretty, that’s all.” Chunks of raspberry hit the table at terminal velocity as the green girl choked on her own astonishment. Recovering from her near-death experience, she began to fully process the words, a fantastic blush creeping down like purple ivy from her high cheekbones and settling on every visible inch of her neck and chest. “I mean it,” the blonde continued, patting her friend on the back. “You wanted to address the ‘unsaid,’ so here I am. Uh… saying it.”

“C-can… can we g-go outsi-side?” Elphaba wheezed, worrying her hands in her lap. “I _told_ you, it’s not safe in here. We get outside, go somewhere s-secluded, and then…” she gulped, throat bobbing, and managed a nervous smile. “We can… talk… for however l-long we want.”

“Outside it is, then!” the blonde declared, bouncing up from her seat, full of anxious energy. She hauled the green girl up by the armpits, not waiting for her to gain a solid footing. Stumbling, Elphaba nevertheless hurried out the front door, down the gravel path, and towards the dirt road that had borne them to the house.

“This way! Follow me,” she barked, barely hesitating enough for her friend to catch up with her long strides. “There’s a grotto,” she said, “a little ways down the road here. I used to go all the time with T– uh… a family friend. It’s where I learned to swim,” she continued. “I used to be afraid of water; don’t tell anyone that. But the pond here is really nice. We could go catch frogs, or minnows, or we could just pick water lilies because they match your dress. Wait!” She skidded to a halt, squeezing her eyes shut and turning to the house. She stood for a minute, hands trembling, until a shorts-looking object flew into her arms. “Do you need something to swim in? I can just grab it, if you want.”

“No, it’s fine,” Galinda reassured her. “I’ll make it work.” She tossed her hair and struck a pose, hands on her hips.

“You always do, somehow,” her roommate chuckled. Clutching her clothes, she began to rush down the street once more. The girls soon arrived at a divet in the roadside trees, and Elphaba immediately leapt into the undergrowth, gesturing for Galinda to follow. “It’s not far, now!” she yelped excitedly, practically sprinting ahead. 

Galinda caught a few rebounding branches in the face as she tried to keep pace. She lost sight of Elphaba among the trees once or twice, but something in her chest always turned her to the right path. She had never thought her roommate to be quite so athletic, but the precision with which the green girl weaved through thickets and shrubs made the forest appear to bend to her will. Her cloak billowed in her own wake. A small band of jays began to tail her, chattering overhead as they bobbed and weaved with similar expertise.

Finally, Galinda tripped, courtesy of several small roots unfurling back into place at her feet. The noise startled not only the jays but also Elphaba, who nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard the scream- _thud_ combination. She whipped around only to see a pile of blonde hair, skirts, and indignation shakily regaining its footing, covered in dirt and moss. She launched herself backwards, scrambling nearly on all fours, concern steadily mounting.

“Are you okay?” she nearly shrieked. The blonde was breathing hard and seemed rattled, but Elphaba couldn’t see any blood. _Unless it’s covered by dirt_ , she thought, panicked. Dropping to her knees, she took in her friend’s hands and legs all at once, scanning them closely for scrapes. “Are you hurt? Oh, Galinda, I’m so sorry!” She wiped off a streak of soil with as much care as she could muster through her own unsteady fingers. The blonde twitched. Elphaba yanked her hands away in an instant, so fast that she knocked herself off-balance and tumbled onto her rear. “Did _I_ hurt you?”

Galinda stood, reassembling her sense of “up” and “down,” and gazed at her friend. Were those _tears_ in her eyes? “Elphie, no! I’m all right,” she said hastily, waving her hands around.

“O-of course,” the green girl sniffed. “Well, we’re nearly… nearly there, if you want to. Um. Take it slow.” The blonde nodded. “A-alright.”

They carefully picked their way over a few fallen trees, scattering bits of fungus under their shoes and nearly sending a small frog into cardiac arrest as Elphaba’s boot clomped down inches from its fragile body. She picked it up and settled it on the brim of her hat instead, where its sticky little fingers could easily grip the rough fabric. It tucked its legs into a shady spot and relished the cool breeze.

Finally, _finally_ , they broke through the forest and into a sun-spackled grotto, where frogsong and birdsong joined together in a strange croaking-cawing harmony and a lush carpet of moss thrummed with a bassline of life. A respectable-sized pond, half-shaded by the canopy of trees, glistened supernaturally, inviting anyone who stepped in to remain for as long as they wished.

Elphaba kicked off her boots and gently placed her hat next to them, digging her bare toes into the moss shore. She motioned to Galinda to do the same, baring all her teeth in a mile-wide grin of excitement. She belonged in this forest, Galinda realized, as the sun glinted off the green girl’s fangs. A tragically gentle beast, or perhaps some sort of an elf; melting into the green, communing with life itself to rule the floral and faunal realms. Her black hair, raven’s wing, was coming out of its braid in places, wild strands clinging to her face and shoulders. Here, free from judging eyes and harsh fathers and any expectations, she could exist and Galinda could absorb every facet of her being, every curve and edge and polygon that constituted Elphaba Thropp. She basked in it, in her roommate’s sunlight glow, in each micro-movement of her eyes.

Elphaba contemplated the girl in front of her, as well. Round to her angular, pink to her green, blonde to her black. A perfect pair of opposites, poles of a magnet, attracted to each other by the laws of the universe. The sun cast her hair into relief, lighting it in such a way that it looked like candyfloss. The dirt smudged on her cheeks accentuated their rosiness, and her eyes’ blue was light as the sky’s. Her lips — Elphaba really tried not to think about them but, alas — curved into a near-permanent smile, accentuating the dimple on her right cheek and illuminating her face more than either the sun or stars could ever hope to. She moved closer; whether out of scientific instinct to observe or an overwhelming rush of affection she could not hope to say, but she nevertheless approached coolly. And calmly. With absolutely no trepidation whatsoever.

Galinda watched as Elphaba stutter-stepped before her, visibly trembling as she took up the blonde’s hands and brought them to her sternum. Her pupils were blown wide and she worried her bottom lip with her teeth to the point of nearly drawing blood. Galinda felt the green girl’s heart galloping beneath her dress, frantic with anticipation, but she decided to pull away before the situation could develop further. Momentarily disregarding the hurt that crossed Elphaba’s face, she positioned herself a safe distance away and began to speak.

“There’s a few things we need to clear up, Elphaba.” She took a deep, shuddering breath. “First off, our current dynamic is very… charged, if you will? I’d like to address that as soon as possible by asking you this: what are your feelings towards me? Be honest.” She couldn’t tell whether her roommate was more uneasy about the question or the role reversal, but she pressed on. “Actually, I’ll be brave and go first, since you don’t look like you’re quite ready yet. But prepare yourself. All right? All right. _Ahem_. I’ve liked a lot of people in my life, and a lot of them have liked me back. But I’ve never quite experienced someone like you. You’re electric, you’re captivating, and sometimes when I look at you my _heart_ hurts. And I’ve been hesitant to say that for so long, and I’m… I’m sorry I didn’t say it sooner, but I can’t just shove it down anymore! You’re not the first girl I’ve fallen for, but you’re the first who’s made me feel like _this_! And I’d be correct to assume you feel the same?” With that upward quirk of her words, Galinda let out her whole lung capacity in a final sigh to feebly counteract her blush. “I hope I haven’t misinterpreted anything here.”

“No!” Elphaba burst out, vibrating with nerves. “Nothing! Has been misinterpreted, misconstrued, any of the bad misses! But you! You’re a good miss!” She clapped a hand over her mouth at the silly turn of phrase, heart jumping in her throat. “I-I mean! I’ve f…fff-felt many things over the years, mostly an…anger and despair. But when I met y-you, something was strange, s…ss-something was wrong! With what I was feeling. It wasn’t bad, it was good, it was _new_ , it set my heart on fire and whenever I _saw_ you I’d start to… start to tremble; and you hated me, and I hated that I _couldn’t_ hate you! And _then_ you started being _nice_ to me, and I–” she stopped to gulp in air. “I s-started _imagining_. What if we… what if we could just be together all the time, you know? More than we already were, more than roommates and certainly,” she squeezed her eyes shut to stop the confidence from leaking out, “certainly m-m-more than friends! _Ah_ – I. Thought about k… k– _uh_ … kissing you,” she struggled to vocalize, “more t-times than I could count because you’re simply _wonderful_! You’re golden, you made me feel happiness for the first time in my life; you made me _love_ . S…something I thought would be impossible. It’s gone en…entirely past any physicality and now my emotions are in turmoil because until yesterday I could’ve never _dreamed_ of this! Well, I-I _could_ dream, but, of course, it would be a dream, and–”

“Elphie–”

“I-I…”

“You’re spiraling.” The blonde closed her eyes, expression neutral; a spear of ice tore down Elphaba’s spine. “And I want to make sure you’re aware of that. We’re different, ‘love’ is a bit definite, and you’ve told me yourself that you don’t exactly have a frame of reference for romance.”

“H…hhhhhhhh…” the green girl choked, desperately trying to breathe. _I fucked it up. I said too much. I said too much and now she’s angry, she hates me._ The persistent gnawing voice in the depths of her head spoke up. _You’ll be alone, always. Always and forever_. “Hhhh… _ngh!_ ” No, she wasn’t crying. She must have developed an allergy of some sort.

“However!” Galinda proclaimed, after a few seconds of contemplation. “I’m… inclined to agree with you. I’m just worried about your inexperience, no offense.” She turned to the green girl, who was fervently rubbing her eyes. “Oh, Elphie, no! What’s wrong?”

“Yo…you’re so. C-c-confusing sometimes!” she shuddered, swallowing hard and swiping her hand under her nose. “Just s-say what you mean outright.” The blonde finally relented, rushing to envelop her roommate in a comforting hug. “You scared me, my sweet,” Elphaba mumbled, shakily, into sun-touched curls. The bubbly exhilaration of heartfelt confession swelled within her chest, making her breath shallow and her head light. They held each other for a long moment, secure in the knowledge of acknowledged feelings. Then, when the direct heat became nearly too much to bear, they parted.

Elphaba turned her back to Galinda and began to undress, and only then did the blonde remember that the green girl’s excuse for coming to this place was to swim. She shook off any unsavory thoughts and fiddled with the buttons on her sundress, hoping the sun could dry her underclothes before she had to put it back on. She removed her hairpins and laid them in her shoes, freeing some of her more unruly ringlets. Looking back, she only caught a fleeting glimpse of a green shoulder before Elphaba shrieked, “turn around!” and toppled onto her side, tangled in a hastily-tossed-on dress. Giggling at the commotion, Galinda decided to dip her toe into the water and gasped when she found it warm as a bath.

“What was that all about?” she chortled, sensing the green girl’s presence approaching her flank.

“I wasn’t fucking. Wearing underwear,” came the sheepish reply. She turned to look. Elphaba stood there, clad only in a pair of boxers that she had bought half-jokingly at Galinda’s behest. She gave off the air and appearance of a nervous teenage boy, nothing but unbrushed hair and pectorals and knobby knees; brave enough to be out with a girl in the first place but timid enough to not know what to do with her hands. The blonde took pity on her and poked her in the sternum, eliciting a yelp and a smile. Long, slender fingers wrapped themselves around equally willowy hips as the green girl scowled good-naturedly.

“If only I could be so brazen,” Galinda joked, mournfully gazing down at her own chest. Elphaba had to bite back a snarky retort to that. Successfully holding her tongue, she instead waxed philosophical.

“So much good can come from nothing.” Spreading her arms out wide, she tilted her head to the sky, closed her eyes, and smiled sagely. Said “nothing” bore a continuation of the few freckles on her face, the pattern of which extended to her shoulders in a shy gradient. “Oz, I feel like a plant. Just… photosynthesizin’ over here,” she chuckled. “Are you gonna get in the water or not?” Eyes still shut, she was entirely unaware of a certain mischievous blonde taking feather-light steps towards her. Even still — as her glasses were tucked into her cloak about ten feet back — opening her eyes couldn’t possibly have spared her from the monumental shove that sent her, arms pinwheeling, into eighteen inches of pond water.

“You _hellion_.” Elphaba rose, sputtering and swiping her partially-wet hair out of her face. Moving like a bog monster, she quickly latched onto Galinda’s wrists and dragged her into the water with surprising force. The blonde didn’t even bother to resist; she deserved it, after all, but as her own body plummeted into the shallows she did not relinquish her grasp on her friend’s hands. As they toppled, Elphaba caught sight of a massive smirk. She didn’t have time to process more than that before being fully submerged.

The pond had never been dirty, but some wild influence had cleared it of any muck at the bottom; no dead leaves, no sharp rocks, and no deceptively piercing twigs that would leave you trailing blood all the way back to the tiled floors of your bathroom. Thus, the girls were safe, but not from each other. They grappled playfully in the shallows, Galinda utilizing her lower center of gravity to more often than not come out on top; both competitively and literally. The sixth time she managed to dunk her emerald friend, the girl simply gave up and laid underwater for a concerning amount of time, having shoved the air out of her lungs when she had screamed in frustration. Her contemplation of the sun’s refraction was brutally shattered when a pale arm hurriedly scooped her into a sitting position.

“Are you TRYING to drown yourself?” Galinda yelped incredulously. One brown eye narrowed at her through a curtain of soaked black hair.

“Of course not. I should hope you never witness my death,” Elphaba gurgled, relaxing into her friend’s gentle touch. “I’m not even actively suicidal.”

“That's not funny! Are you even aware of how concerning that is?” The green girl fidgeted. _Oh, you really stepped in it this time_. She joked like this with herself — far too often, now that she thought about it — and now she would have to talk her way around a Galinda on the care-path. Like a warpath, but infinitely less condemnable.

“Don’t worry about me; it’s been years. I have too many things I want to do, now.” She laughed nervously. “I’ve told you a million times, I want to change the world. If I die before Animal rights reform happens, I’ll resurrect myself out of pure spite and personally invert the power constructs of society with my cold, zombified hands.

“Besides,” she said emphatically, “I have people now. I have Nessa, now that she’s not a literal child anymore; I have Boq, if I feel like dealing with him, and Fiyero, mostly for the laughs. And I have _you_. I know we just had a whole… collective romantic revelation, or something, but we’re friends.” Her visible eye grew worried. “W-wait. That’s how this works, right?”

“Yes, Elphaba,” Galinda sighed relievedly, fears assuaged. “Just because we like each other doesn’t mean we can’t also be friends.”

The green girl smirked through her unease. “Calling it like it is, now, are we?” She wriggled out of her roommate’s grasp and, sucking in a lungful of air, flopped on her back. “After all this time?”

“I simply wanted to make sure you were ready,” the blonde huffed, wading over to where the green girl had begun to float peacefully. “Because I sure as hell knew you weren’t ever going to say it first, you dolt.”

“Oh, dear Galinda, you know me too well.” She flipped over and dove, quick as a flash. Surfacing with a mouthful of water, she promptly spouted it in her friend’s general direction, using the distraction to counterattack with a gentle pinch to the stomach.

“EeeYOW! Gross! I’m covered in Elphie spit!” Galinda lamented, swatting at teasing green fingers.

“And there’s a lot more where that came from!” Elphaba crowed, clumsily kicking a huge spray of pond into the air. “Take that! Beast.” She grinned maniacally, shaking her wild head of hair clear from her eyes and throwing its impressive length into relief. Strands clung to that strange intermediate area right around the waist, far enough down for the ends to float gently on the surface where she stood, just a green torso sticking out of the vast blue expanse. Vision restored, she began to wave her hands and mutter. A current, nearly a riptide, formed behind Galinda and dragged her nearer to the center of the pond. Nearer to Elphaba.

She reached her destination while the other girl was still mid-incantation, and took advantage of that to paddle behind and attach herself to Elphaba’s back.

“ _Ahk waa tay amay daydu khaat eleka ahk_ – what the hell are you doing?” Concentration lost, Elphaba reluctantly allowed the waters to flutter back to their rightful place.

“Hugging you,” Galinda mumbled, pink cheek squished against green scapula. “Carry me around the lake, why don’t you? It’s _romantic_ ,” she crooned, supremely comfortable and genuinely enjoying the physical contact. Her friend grunted, disguising fondness — as she so often did — with mock irritation. In this particular instance, Galinda _knew_ she couldn’t possibly be unwilling, as, at the mention of romance, her stick-out ears had lit up in that wonderful shade of purple.

In previous instances, such piggyback rides had resulted in Elphaba’s imminent collapse, bony knees knocking together before stick-legs gave way; absolutely a product of her body being fueled only by Shiz vegetarian dinners, homoerotic tension, and rage. But today, the water kindly bore their combined weight, allowing the girls safe passage back and forth across the shallows. Of course, Elphaba still trembled; although this time it was understandable, given the small matter of a pretty girl securely nestled into her neck.

_Ah, the neck_ , Elphaba contemplated. Applying logic usually calmed her nerves. _The source of vitality, home of the jugular. What animals protect above all else in battle. The gateway to the br_ – A foreign sensation on her own pulse point brought her entire somatic nervous system to a halt. A playful giggle sounded below her right earlobe.

“Why’d you stop?” 

Her jaw hung open. She couldn’t have responded if she tried.

“Come on, Elphie,” the blonde all but whispered, lips brushing against the same spot upon which she had just bestowed a kiss. Laughing would be cruel, but the sight of Elphaba blushing so intensely that she actually staggered backwards did incite a wide grin. “I was having fun.” The green girl suddenly remembered to breathe, and shuddered back to life with a massively hitched inhale. She attempted to reply, but could manage no more than a pitiful, breathy whine. “Keep going. We’re almost to the other side.”

“Ye- _yes_ …” She stumbled over herself to resume her course.

They reached the bank far too quickly for Galinda’s liking, so she did what she did best: played dirty. Loosening herself from Elphaba’s hips, she came around to the front and latched her arms around her waist, burying her face in the crook of her neck once more. She was aware of just how flirty she was being, but month after month of bottled feelings and stolen moments overrode her reasoning. They held each other for a good long while, until Elphaba finally regained her voice.

“Do it again.” Laconic and rough, but its harshness was completely undermined by sheer _want_.

“Hmm. Not very polite, Elphie. What exactly are you asking?”

“ _Kissmeagain_.”

“Gesundheit. Speak up,” she teased, which got her face peeled away from Elphaba’s body. The green girl worked her jaw and gnawed on her lip, but successfully kept her cool.

“Kiss me a-again.” Galinda, already leaning in, happily obliged. 

She felt Elphaba’s throat bob as she gently administered another, more purposeful, peck to her neck. If her arms hadn’t been entwined around Elphaba’s middle, there was a good chance the girl would’ve fallen over right then and there.

Elphaba, for all intents and purposes, was currently not thinking. It could not be stressed enough; no thoughts were entering or leaving her head. All activity had ceased, replaced only by a single stream of consciousness: _neck? Kiss? Soft… Kiss on the neck? Hell… yeah…_ Her legs were jelly and her hands were also jelly; a lanky, quivering mess of limbs and sensation.

“Oh, Elphie? Elphaba the Delirious?” Realizing that she was perhaps coming on a bit strong, Galinda abandoned the neck and pressed a chaste kiss to her friend’s cheek, proudly admiring her ability to reduce the sardonic girl to such a certain softness. The action snapped Elphaba out of her reverie.

“ _Ah!_ – I’m going to be thinking about that fff… for _ages_ ,” she mumbled abashedly. “Is th-th-this the part where I– where we–”

“Do you want to?” the blonde asked. She didn’t want to force the issue, aware that she was already treading on eggshells with the cheek kiss.

“Per… perhaps later,” Elphaba conceded, fiddling with the waistband of her trunks. “This was all a bit sudden, not that I particularly minded. I’d just like to… slow down, for now.” She took the blonde’s smaller hand in her own, admiring the short manicured nails before cautiously bringing it to her lips. “Pretty girl,” she whispered, more confident in the realm of verbal affection. “How long it has been since I first dreamt of you.”

“Why, Miss Elphaba! Such a way with words,” Galinda chortled, thoroughly enjoying the green girl’s gentle flirtation. 

“That’s ‘Miss Elphaba the Delirious’ to you, thank you very much,” she smirked. “I’m changing my name as soon as we get back.”

“No more ‘Elphie?’” The blonde looked so genuinely saddened by this that Elphaba hurriedly backpedaled.

“No, no! Elphie’s…” Whatever her response to this was, she’d regret it; either by crushing Galinda’s spirit or — she shuddered — revealing that she actually absolutely _adored_ the nickname. “Elphie’s good.” _Perfect_. “Better than ‘Fabala,’ at any rate.”

“I kind of like that. It’s mystical.”

“Well, _I_ don’t like it,” she huffed. “They know my name now. They should use it.”

“Elphaba. Eeeellllphaba,” the blonde sing-songed, stretching the syllables like taffy. “Elphabaaaaaa.”

“Stop it,” she huffed, sheepishly crossing her arms; although, a small smile still managed to sneak onto her face. “Or else I’ll start bastardizing your name, too.”

“Oh, I’m feeling so threatened! Strike me down if you must, you mean green thing.” She swooned, gently laying herself in the water. A small wave, generated from nowhere, slapped her cheek. She glared at it, and then at her friend, whose pseudo-shocked expression belied exactly none of her guilt.

They frolicked for a few hours more, lost to the sun and sky; Elphaba demonstrated her propensity for capturing frogs, and Galinda demonstrated her equal propensity for being disgusted with them. However, she did applaud through the revulsion when, after a prolonged underwater search, the green girl shot through the surface with an entire sunfish held gingerly in her teeth. Neither of them questioned exactly how that had happened. Eventually, they lay in the moss of the shore, Galinda pleasantly exercised and Elphaba completely tuckered out. Indeed, she was curled into the blonde’s side, nearly asleep, hair still soaked with pond water and freckles standing out from sun exposure. 

“Should we go back?” Galinda murmured, gently stroking the green arm draped across her abdomen.

“Nnnn…” was the only response, as Elphaba instead tangled their legs together and drew her closer.

“Sun’s going down,” she tried again, eliciting a stronger reaction. The green girl sluggishly extracted herself from their embrace and trudged towards where her glasses sat. Donning them, she lazily re-dressed, foregoing drying her hair or boxers. Fastening only her cloak (because “nobody would be looking anyways”), she made to gather her hat, and stuffed the rest of her clothes in it. Galinda looked on the whole scene with such fondness that she surprised herself a bit. “Ready?” A sleepy nod. “Lead the way, then.”

The journey back was much slower, but neither girl took issue with that. They walked as one most of the way, exchanging shy glances with arms entwined, until the dirt road began to fade back into gravel and Colwen Grounds exposed its dark face to the gentle sun.

Once inside, Elphaba artfully dodged several questions from her father about their whereabouts, labelling the journey “sightseeing with a side of swimming,” a phrase uninteresting enough that Shell’s incessant badgering also ceased. They walked to Galinda’s room once more, and this time Elphaba — nearly dead on her feet — entered without hesitation, collapsing onto a wooden chair near the bed. Galinda giggled at her roommate’s display.

“You should get to bed.”

“ _Nnngh_ … tired…” She moved to leave, but lingered in the doorway. “What now?”

“Hmm?”

Elphaba dropped her voice. “About us, I mean.” She scrambled for the proper wording. “What _are_ we?”

“I think that’s a question for when we’re both awake,” Galinda said gently. She knew that sometimes, when Elphaba was confused or overwhelmed (or in this case, exhausted), she would assemble her conversations from an impressively comprehensive list of phrases, accumulated from years of reading and listening to others. Galinda quite enjoyed guessing their origins. This one was a quote from a romance novel Galinda had lent her a few weeks ago, which she had returned with a note that simply read _you’re filthy_. “Also, that’s from _Call Me Softly_. Cite your sources,” she chided playfully.

Grumbling, Elphaba returned to her room. She stood in its center for a minute, reminiscing on the day, and her brain began to stick on a single moment. She closed her eyes; green fingers caressed a pulsing jugular vein and a shiver rocked her body. She collapsed onto her bed with fire in her core, but sleep in her limbs. And she dreamt.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Aqua te a me deducat._  
>  also please comment! i love hearing what you guys have to say!
> 
> ALSO points to whoever can spot the danganronpa references in this chapter. the character you'll see is one you hopefully saw before.


	6. Contiguity

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for another 2-week hiatus, this chapter kicked my ass :) adhd really said (don't) werk, bitch

“…lphie? Elphie!” Elphaba started violently out of her sleep, heart racing and blanket bunched tightly between her thighs. “Open the door!” She got up; wandering around on shaky legs, she tried to recall the dream she’d been having. Bits and pieces came to her: four hands, two of them her own; the distinct sensation of sitting on someone’s lap; a flash of blonde; a consistent, insistent motion— oh. _OH_. She nervously ran a hand over her abs, feeling the thin sheen of sweat on them, and blushed furiously when they quivered. 

The doorknob rattled. “All right, I’m _coming_! Wait, no! Wait, yes! Ugh–” she frantically untied her cloak and peeled off her boxers, still damp. From the pond. She hastily threw both some clothes on and the door open. “What?” Gazing at the blonde girl, who was in the midst of hammering on the doorframe, she tried to put on a disgruntled expression.

“You were nearly screaming a minute ago, completely incoherent,” Galinda said worriedly. Her unease only grew as she examined her friend; the green girl looked positively ill: fidgety, flushed, and bearing her own special brand of irritation. “Was it a nightmare? Oh, sweet Lurline, I’d feel so guilty if it was; I’m so sorry I wasn’t there–”

“Nope! Not a nightmare. Don’t worry your little head about me, no ma’am,” she laughed, frenzied. Too loud for this early in the morning; too many teeth in that smile.

“You’re lying.”

“I swear on my life— no, on my future research grant. That’s probably worth more.”

“Miss Elphaba!” Forty seconds was ostensibly a new record for how fast the girl could spiral into self-loathing. “You’re either high out of your _mind_ , _incredibly_ ill, or you’re lying through your teeth. You have two sentences to prove any of those false.”

“I’m none of those!” she cried. “It was just a strange dream.”

“Oh?” The blonde raised an eyebrow and decided to do a little lying herself. “Then why was I woken up by someone yelling for me? ‘Strange dream,’ indeed.” She tapped her chin with a finger. “That’s why I thought ‘nightmare,’ you know. But if you say it’s not, then I’ll have to employ my powers of deduction.” Elphaba snorted _hard_ at that.

“Oh, yes. Deduce me.”

“Well, if you’re _screaming my name_ in the early hours of the morning, that really only has two implications, and you’ve ruled one of them out by your own admission. So,” Galinda smirked, “what kind of innuendo should I make?” The green girl narrowed her eyes.

“First of all, you smut-brained lech, this wasn’t a… sex dream. And even if I _was_ yelling, you couldn’t hear me from your bedroom. My father specifically put me in this room so any noises I made wouldn’t bother guests.” She scoffed at Galinda’s alarmed stare. “No need to be concerned; I threw a lot of tantrums as a kid.” _You probably saw some of the damage in the hall_. “Anyways, it’s really hard to hear anything unless you’re much closer to the door. Therefore, I can confidently say that any noise I _allegedly_ made did not, in fact, wake you. Not only that, but you would’ve had to be on your way to my room. So, may I ask what you were doing in my hallway so early in the morning, Miss Galinda?”

The blonde gave a prize-winning smile. “Aww, you got me. I wanted to see you, of course! It’s kind of weird waking up without you in the bed a few feet over.” _Flattery always works_ , she thought impishly. “I’ll tell the truth if you will. I did hear you making noises, so what kind of dream was this? Can’t be that bad.”

“Doesn’t matter,” Elphaba muttered, pointedly looking away.

“Oooh! So it _is_ embarrassing!” She bounced closer still, eyes shining. “Who was it about?”

“N-nobody! How did you–”

“Oh, please.” Galinda held up a finger in a _one moment_ gesture, ran down the hall to ensure nobody was in earshot, and skipped back menacingly. “You were _moaning_ , Elphie,” she stage-whispered. “You claim it wasn’t spicy, but I’m not _stupid_.”

All Elphaba could manage was a squawk. “Fuck– I was NOT. And that doesn’t immediately mean–”

“Mine ears doth not deceivtheth-eth me,” Galinda said, stumbling on the archaisms. “Besides, I won’t tell anyone. I just want to know.”

“One day, the gossip wells will dry up; then, from where will you drink?” the green girl quavered, trying to save face. “Also, how do I know you’re not still lying?”

“Well, this is kind of a stupid thing to lie about.”

“This is a stupid thing to _talk_ about in the first place!” she grumbled. “And you already lied once.”

“Fine! Only truth from here on out! I just _need_ to know.”

“Why? To laugh at me?”

Galinda had to word her answer very carefully. “Well… there’s about a ninety percent chance that I won’t laugh, but if it’s one of our friends I might have to and you really can’t blame me for that.”

“I know what you’re thinking, and it’s not Boq—”

“Oh thank OZ. I don’t know how I could’ve handled that.”

“— Although, they’re _nearly_ as irritating, sometimes.” Galinda’s ears perked up.

“Fiyero?”

“Not Fiyero,” Elphaba interrupted. “Remember when you said you weren’t stupid?” The blonde pouted. “Do you _actually_ have no idea?”

“We-e-ell,” Galinda drawled, “I might be on the right track. Lemme guess.” She pretended to scrutinize her roommate, framing her in a little finger-rectangle and squinting. “They’re about yea high,” she giggled, resting a hand on Elphaba’s shoulder, “and they have _great_ hair.”

“I already said it wasn’t Boq,” Elphaba smirked.

“Rude!” The blonde whacked her on the shoulder. “Anyways, I’m flattered.”

“ _Why?_ ” Elphaba grumbled. “If someone told me that, I’d bite them, no questions asked.”

“We both like each other, it’s ultimately harmless, and,” she tucked her chin sheepishly, “it’s cute that you were thinking about me. I mean, that’s how dreams work, after all.”

“No, it’s not? Dreams are _random_.”

“Whatever, bio major. Then that means, out of all those scenarios, your brain chose me!” Elphaba could practically see little illustrated hearts floating around her blonde’s head.

“Sap,” she scoffed, hiding a smile.

“Cynic.”

“Pervert.” For a minute, they had sunk back into their early days, all teeth and claws, insults tinged with playfulness and yearning.

“Shut up!”

“ _Make_ me.” 

Galinda sprouted a wicked grin. “Oh, _gladly_. As long as you shower first.” How she enjoyed pushing her green girl’s many, many buttons.

Once again flustered, Elphaba shuffled downstairs to the bathroom and collapsed onto the edge of the tub. Was this what she had been craving the whole time? Galinda’s bold flirtations, usually aimed at anyone within a ten-foot radius, now turned directly onto her? Yes. Absolutely. The amount of affection she had received from the blonde alone outweighed her lifetime total by a large margin. Sure, it was sometimes emotionally draining, but for the past few months she had been waking up feeling positively giddy that she even had someone to talk to. A strange, unfamiliar desire for life.

She stood up and stared at herself in the mirror, _pretty_ echoing through her mind. One of Galinda’s more tenderly-administered compliments. But what about her was “pretty?” Pretty terrible, sure. The pessimism, the hard-headedness, the temper, the naïvete, the cowardice? The erratic movements, multitudinous scars, malnourished physique, monstrous teeth, shifty eyes? The _green_? A color so emblematic of life that she, who had prayed for years and years to no longer exist, did not deserve to bear it. Indeed; it was an interesting feeling, wanting to live. Perhaps she was a result of a great cosmic joke, the perfect symbol of irony.

She wanted to believe Galinda, she really did. But, now that she had at least reconciled the idea of staying alive, she was forced to contend with her existential dread. _Love is temporary_ , she thought, _no matter who claims otherwise. The fact that I’ve survived so long proves that you can live without it_. Because who was more unloveable than she? That had been drilled into her from the instant of her birth. _You Are Nothing,_ they’d said. _Nothing but a Menace_. _A Burden_. 

A memory from her late childhood swam to the forefront of her mind; a group of classmates had, within her earshot, eagerly and unanimously agreed that if they ever needed to perform a demonic sacrifice they would use her, only to renege on that promise because — as they so eloquently put it — there was still a slim chance she could go up instead of down. Eternal suffering probably wouldn’t even be enough, they decided, and she had very quickly realized that she was surrounded. Thus went the story of her first broken rib.

She clutched that old wound, which still sometimes clicked when she stretched, lost in the unpleasant remembrance of a pair of steel-toed boots. Their owner had squatted next to her, gasping in the dirt, and hissed that her father had never been so willing to buy her something. _I told him I’d use ‘em to kick yer skull in, and he practically flew to the cobbler_ , she crowed, and was seemingly intent on following through with that promise until Elphaba coughed up a good quantity of blood onto her foot. _Come to think of it, that was the last time I saw those boots._ She had staggered home that night, straight into a thunderous argument between her father and a constable, and— the memory ended there. She’d blacked out. Probably for the best.

Peeling off her clothes, she stood mutely as the shower water warmed to an acceptable level. She stepped in, twisting away from the intense heat on her back, and stuck her hand in instead. It burned. _Good_. She slowly eased the rest of her body under the tap and watched the near-scalding water agitate it to fluorescence. Washing herself took no time at all, but she stood around until the heat began to make her nauseous. She choked on steam. Even then, she found it difficult to execute the simple task of shutting off the shower. The mirror was fogged, and only then she could finally bear to fully observe herself. A faint silhouette, devoid of shape and self, stared solemnly back. _Much better_. She blearily exited the bathroom, roughly toweling her hair, glasses dangling from the front of her shirt.

“Did you follow me here?” she asked flatly, squinting at Galinda’s blurry figure. It bobbed and weaved toward her until she could see the outline of a shit-eating grin. The blonde snuggled into Elphaba and gazed up at her, walking two fingers up her shoulder.

“Maaaaaybe,” she winked, eager to get back to flirting. Elphaba simply brushed her off.

“Let’s go downstairs,” she mumbled. Somewhat awkwardly, they descended to the first floor.

“Something wrong, Elphie?” the blonde asked, once again struggling to keep up with the green girl’s strides.

“Contemplating my own mortality,” Elphaba half-lied. “Nasty business.” That shut Galinda up, thank _god_. She was still too spacey to truly engage in conversation about her own inadequacies.

The “yikes” was inevitable, but the matter was blessedly dropped. Elphaba didn’t even bother heading into the dining room, and instead turned directly to leave the building.

“You’re not going to have breakfast?”

Elphaba waved her hand dismissively. “Not hungry.” The blonde followed her in confused silence.

“Can you at least wait for me?”

“Just meet me outside.”

“And what if you’re gone?” The green girl was prone to occasionally wandering off, but some catch in Galinda’s throat betrayed her true concern.

“Then wait for me to get back.” The brain fog was making her snippy. “I don’t really care what you do.” She vigorously rubbed her eyes. “Don’t really care… just do whatever you want. Whatever–”

“You need to eat something,” the blonde demanded. “It’s been an actual, real-life day since you did, and you’re getting testy.”

For Elphaba, this morning had seen a series of different pent-up emotions all boiling into an unsavory stew. The last thing she had wanted to deal with was a pushy, care-about-yourself-for-once Galinda; no matter how much she liked the blonde, she had not only _hard_ limits to her patience but also the shortest temper known to man. She did wish that “You’re being annoying, leave me the fuck alone!” weren’t the words that came out of her traitorous mouth, but she was too bent out of shape to care all that much. “Don’t worry ‘bout me,” she half-heartedly backpedaled, but she was already retreating towards the front door, leaving Galinda planted in the middle of the hallway close to tears.

When she entered into the outdoors, warm air caressed her arms for a very peaceful three seconds before she fully opened her eyes and the world _warped_. The sun’s full brightness assaulted her brain, adding a new haze to the existing muddle, this one of pain. She swayed and stumbled towards the shade of her big tree, longing for some tactile distraction. She got one in the form of her left hand crashing painfully into the gravel, followed soon by the rest of her. The only route forward was on all fours. Scuttling across the remaining part of the yard, she flung her back against the tree and desperately covered her eyes, willing the stinging sun to spare her senses. Her heart pounded in her ears, loud to the point that she tried to cover them but only made the situation worse. Where was her cloak?

Trapped in her bedroom, that’s where. Even if she’d had the focus to attempt to summon it, she could barely remember the incantation. The lack of food, well-intentioned nagging, overstimulation, and unwelcome memories _memories_ MEMORIES— had dropped her into a semi-dissociative state. She cracked an eyelid and stared at her fingers, which were twitching out of her control. _Stop that_. No dice. This week was shaping up to hold a record number of consecutive bad mornings.

She slammed her right fist into the tree and shoved her left wrist in her mouth, making sharp little noises of frustration. She shouldn’t be acting this way. Nearly eighteen and melting down in her front yard because she couldn’t handle a little introspection. _It’s more than that_ , a small part of her brain muttered, but she cut it off with another slam of her back against the steadfast trunk. The bigger, nastier region spoke up. _Yeah, you’re just being stupid_.

“S’u…pid,” she ground out, words muffled by her own flesh; her face scrunched up at the sudden taste of copper. Shakily, she removed her wrist from the clutches of her teeth, blearily scrutinizing red against green through a layer of depersonalization. “‘S’mine?” she asked — to nobody, really — before a dull ache began to irritatedly insist that yes, it was indeed her blood and perhaps she should do something about it. Honestly, she couldn’t have cared less about the blood. She half-assed the task and simply licked it off, instead focusing on getting her cloak back, because _maybe_ that could calm her down just a _bit_ and— oh, no. Not now.

She clumsily scrabbled up into some low branches and draped her whole body over them, grateful for the grounding pressure and roughness, and leveled her gaze at a certain pink-clad Gillikinese girl who was trudging despondently through the grass.

“Elphie?” The shrill noise forced her hands over her ears once more. _If she really wanted to find me, she’d actually look_. “Elphie, get out of that tree.” _Oh, shit._

The fall was only three or four feet, but she lay there a while longer to appreciate the prick of pebbles and sting of dirt in her fresh bite marks. The cool earth soothed a bit of the fervor she had worked herself into; however, she still wanted— no, _needed_ —

“I-I got something for you.” Galinda sniffled and held out the cloak, gesturing for her to take it; she yanked it out of her hands with enough force to cause the blonde to stumble, which elicited another sad noise. She’d address it later, though. For now, she simply focused on getting the damn thing over her shoulders as quickly as possible. She laid back down, cocooned in black, and curled up under the shade. The blonde gingerly picked up something shiny from between the tree’s roots and sat down next to Elphaba with equal trepidation, waiting until her eyes flickered open and her shoulders loosened.

“‘You made Nessa cry’,” the green girl mumbled to the sky, relaying a years-old mantra of her parents. “‘Do you want to be yelled at now, or later?’” Screwing her fingers into her ears, she gazed expectantly at the blonde.

Galinda shook her head. “I just… what the hell, Elphaba?” She fidgeted with the earpiece of the green girl’s glasses. “You don’t act like this at school, never. And I’m trying really hard to be sympathetic because of your shitty dad, but you were being so nice this morning and now you’re being really mean and weird!” Her voice ascended to a near-sob. “Was it something I said?”

“Not nice, _embarrassed_ ,” Elphaba forced out. “I like… flirting, not… pressure. A-an’ I told you. My head sucks. Beat myself up a-and yelled at you for… no reason.” She rubbed the hem of her cloak between two fingers. “Good analysis?”

“Your treatment of others isn’t some _essay topic_ , Elphaba!” Galinda was desperately trying not to yell, but the whole situation was supremely confusing and her green girl was being _far_ too clinical and obscure. “I have three questions,” she said, recalling what usually worked with similar degrees of verbosity. “Are you okay right now, did I do something wrong, and do you want to talk about it right now?”

Nod, hesitant head shake, shifty glance and shrug. _Wonderful_ , she thought sarcastically. _Well, we’re not getting anywhere at the moment._

“A follow-up, then: do you just want to get your mind off of this for a while?” Because she sure did.

Emphatic nod. _All right, then._ She gestured for the green girl to come closer, and dragged her into her lap when she was within arms’ reach. Elphaba attempted to contort her entire lanky body to fit between her blonde’s legs, but the angles were really just not aligning today; she eventually settled on resting her head on a hip and fully extending herself. A pair of small, warm hands linked with her own and squeezed.

“I was planning… to take you somewhere,” she breathed, but Galinda placed an arm across her chest.

“It can wait.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> <3 PLEASE comment it gives me much serotonin and i WILL respond with love and affection :,)
> 
> also, follow me on tumblr! https://leo-frognag.tumblr.com/  
> gotta get that sweet, sweet Community Engagement


	7. Interlude

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry this took forever :)  
> got my wisdom teeth yoinked and also college apps are a Whole Bitch  
>  _also_ also i promise the plot will develop significantly soon??? it's just been 6 chapters of conversation and gay shit  
> i think i'm just lonely :,)

Maybe an hour, maybe more. The sun strolled across the sky towards its zenith and hung lazily above their heads to the tune of the wind. Not a word passed between the girls; Elphaba was still untangling her thoughts, and Galinda kind of wanted an apology before anything else. A faint yell from indoors floated by, causing the green girl to start and disrupting the hypnotic stroking of her thumb across her blonde’s knuckles.

“Okay, I’ve gathered my wits about me,” she groused, still speaking a bit monotonously. “I really didn’t mean to be so abrasive, I just fucking hate it here.” _Say more, dammit!_ “You wouldn’t understand, but I feel safer at Shiz than I do in that godforsaken house.” _STILL MEAN!_ her conscience lamented. “By that, I mean I like the structure and schedule of school. I’m breaking down a little, I think. But it’s…” she tossed a small pebble at her boot and sighed, “it’s not an excuse. To be a dick. I know I’m overall just a generally shitty person, but I try to, you know. Not hurt your feelings. Sometimes.” Her voice dropped. “You’re not annoying.” She began to sweat nervously when the blonde moved, broken from her reverie at last.

They made shaky eye contact before Galinda finally smiled. “Thank you, Elphaba,” she said, winding a stray curl around her finger. Elphaba resisted the urge to yank on it and watch it spring back into place, an action that her blonde never found quite as amusing as she did. “I’ll admit that I don’t understand what you’re going through a hundred percent of the time, but that absolutely doesn’t mean I’m actively conspiring against you at every turn.” She leveled a tired stare at her green girl. “I just want to help you deal with this. I can’t imagine being afraid of my own parents.”

Elphaba shifted uncomfortably. “That’s not really– _eugh_ . Whatever. I didn’t mean for you to get dragged into… _this_.”

“Elphie, I’d help you in a heartbeat; no matter the situation. This just happens to be a rather serious one,” Galinda said, matter-of-factly. She watched Elphaba experience several emotions in a sort of visual sputter, face cycling from fondness to nervousness to shame in a matter of seconds.

“But family matters a-are… complicated and awkward and convoluted. I told you yesterday, I don’t want pity; my wounds are not your own.” The green girl spoke, haltingly, ducking her head. “Y-you’re… not obligated to care about me.”

“Oh, Elphaba–”

“I just wanted her to enjoy this damn vacation, no stipulations. Was that really too much to ask?” She was muttering to herself again. Galinda scooted over and pressed their backs together, casting a hand behind her for Elphaba to take and ending up in a soft armlock as her green girl curled around the touch. She spoke gently.

“You’re here, with me, so I’m enjoying it plenty. And asking for help isn’t pitiful. I _know_ you talk to Doctor Dillamond all the time about our history papers.” 

The green girl grumbled. “Well, that’s different.”

“Maybe on a surface level, but it’s the same in principle.”

A frustrated huff. “Oh, trust me. If you want to get into semantics, I will. Point being, asking for help is both difficult and, for me, mostly unnecessary. Doctor Dillamond and I just talk things through in a scholarly manner.” She released her hold on Galinda’s hand and turned to face her, cocking her head with dismissive stare. “I do all the ‘figuring things out’ on my own.”

“Like that math assignment?” The blond hadn’t come to play. If Elphaba was going to be stubborn, the claws would come out. “You know, the one you nearly cried over because you just _couldn’t_ figure out what wasn’t working, but when I asked you what was wrong you said ‘nothing’ and proceeded to stay up until three in the morning to finally get it done?” A long, guilty silence accompanied the green girl’s downcast gaze. “Are you beginning to see how this parallels your current situation?”

Elphaba growled, an exasperated noise of potential refutation, but ultimately floundered for nearly ten seconds before grumpily sinking back down into Galinda’s lap. The blonde smiled triumphantly. _At least she’s not arguing. We take those._

“I’m sorry if that was a bit harsh.”

The green girl shrugged, seemingly unbothered. “I’ve given you enough reality checks to warrant one of my own, I suppose.” She stood and arched her back with a campfire crackling of joints, stretching hard enough to let out a small, involuntary squeak. 

Galinda found this _far_ too amusing. She chirped in return, her natural soprano lending itself to an effortless mimicry of her Elphie, who — in all her performative stoicism — was valiantly trying to suppress a smile. The blonde gave a cheeky grin and chirped once more. She rose, brushing dirt off the backs of her legs, and padded over to nestle into Elphaba’s side. Together, they gazed out over the admittedly impressive view that the manor provided. Hardy springtime flowers bloomed unrelentingly all the way down the hill. With Elphaba’s turmoil currently calmed, Galinda found herself at peace.

“You said you had something planned, somewhere to take me?” she said, closing her eyes to better appreciate the sunlight on her cheeks. When the warmth didn’t arrive, she cracked an eyelid only to see that Elphaba had leapt in front of her and was just beginning to speak.

“I had a _fantastic_ idea, actually.” Her eyes shone exactly as they did when she was about to launch into one of her informational cascades; usually about human neurological structure, animal physiology, or the failings of government. “So, last month I wrote home and asked Father if he could send me the current program for the local concert hall, which he was uncharacteristically willing to do… but now that I think about it, he probably realized he could use it as my birthday present. Anyways, it turned out that–” She fidgeted with her cloak and averted her gaze, but the nervous half-smile she wore indicated to Galinda that she would be granting the blonde another precious piece of personal information. “Well, it turned out that the community orchestra is playing a program composed, no pun intended, of my ah… absolute _favorite_ pieces of music.” She rocked back on her heels and nearly lost her balance, but continued to speak increasingly loudly and quickly. “I figured that, since you appreciate such high-society social activities as this, we’d both enjoy ourselves; in different ways, of course, but that’s how it works best, isn’t it? I get my two-ish hours of music, and you get to talk with adults and people-watch if you get bored.”

Galinda blinked several times and took a minute to process everything her enthusiastic green girl had just spouted. “So… we’re going to a concert? I thought you didn’t like loud noises?” Elphaba nodded rapidly.

“True. But this is much different, trust me.”

“Trust wasn’t really the issue here… hold on, I didn’t know you even listened to music!”

“Mostly when you’re not around,” she admitted. “I care very little about what most everyone thinks of me, but you happen to not be ‘most everyone.’”

“What kind of music could _ever_ make me judge you?”

“Nothing egregious, it’s just classical. But still,” she studied the grass at her feet. “I… I suppose I was worried you’d think I’m boring.”

Galinda let out a full-body chuckle. “Your hobbies are mad science, marathon reading, debating ethics, and getting flustered when I hold your hand. And also music, apparently. If I found any of those boring, I would’ve told you _so_ long ago.”

“Yes, what’s passed is past,” Elphaba said tentatively. “It seems so long ago that we were at each other’s throats.”

“Well, I’d say I was at yours around twenty-four hours ag—” She was cut off by the green girl’s anguished, embarrassed groan.

“You’re incorrigible! Back to the music, _please_. I beg you.” Blushing faintly, Elphaba seized her blonde by the shoulders and gently shook her. “I was going to take you into town, but if you can’t behave properly…” Galinda dissolved into giggles.

“I’d love to go, if you’re feeling up to it.”

“Oh, you didn’t have a choice in the matter.” The green girl smoothed her shirt and tugged at her collar. “And neither did I. It’s one-night-only, and my garbage brain is not keeping me from this event.”

“And you’ll be alright?” Galinda worried about Elphaba because the green girl tended to not do so herself.

“I know how to handle myself; I know my limits.” White lies. “Shall we?”

Galinda squawked in indignance. “Looking like _this?_ Elphie, you have dirt on your butt and leaves in your hair. Absolutely not.” Feathers? Ruffled. She took the taller girl’s hand and led her back indoors, chattering away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> leo? letting a conflict last more than 1 chapter? it's less likely than you think  
> i hate writing friends fighting auhghhgh,,,,,,, it's the RSD for me


	8. Strigiform

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FINALLY  
> i've been waiting so long to introduce my boy i hope he's not annoying ghfhjdjkdfg  
> naming characters is so fucking hard because have you _seen_ the names in Oz??? nearly ZERO common naming conventions except for more double letters than normal hnghg  
> (also i promise he won't be 3rd wheeling the entire time, i just like making elphaba flustered)

They began the trek to Rush Margins proper in high spirits. Elphaba had foregone her hat, citing a need for relative inconspicuousness. “I wasn’t exactly a model citizen in my youth,” she explained, which raised a _lot_ more questions than it answered. Galinda told her as much, but she simply gave a mysterious smirk and reminded the blonde that most laws were made to be broken. “Frankly, fuck the justice system,” she grinned. “Besides, if they don’t catch you, they can’t charge you. _Technically,_ I’ve never been arrested.”

“Not yet,” Galinda retorted.

“Well, what would you do? Haul a twelve-year-old off to prison?”

“You did crimes when you were _twelve?_ " The blonde was genuinely taken aback.

Elphaba’s eyes widened, and she began to backpedal. “W-well, not exactly. Didn’t I just say I’ve never been arrested?”

“That doesn’t mean you didn’t do crimes!” She stopped in her tracks. “Prison is for actual offenses! What could you possibly have done as a kid…”

“It’s nothing! Forget I said anything!” Regretting even opening her mouth, the green girl smacked herself in the forehead. “Come on, keep walking; I’ll explain when we get there. Maybe.”

The sun illuminated their path forward. As the day progressed, the small speck on the horizon that Elphaba had demarcated as their destination broadened; smatterings of buildings punctuated a large stretch of cobblestone road, chimney smoke wending through the air. They passed a community garden full of large clusters of flowering bushes, and Elphaba sneezed from the excess pollen. Swiping at her nose, she strode ahead of her blonde and turned around, legs planted at shoulder width and arms spread as wide as her smile. 

“Welcome to Main Street!”

Perhaps “Margins” was a misnomer. The town itself was bustling and clamorous; the squat cottages they had passed on their way in gave way to stacked apartment-looking things. Even on the horizon, they stretched far over Elphaba in the foreground. Rooves leaned in dangerous directions, and mischievous ivy coated any wall exposed to sun. Everywhere Galinda looked, she saw another person appear from around a corner or hurry into a storefront. The street itself was well-used, stones not only cut through with carriage marks but also worn down by footprints. There were no sidewalks.

The tide of citizens parted around the girls, a few heads turning and shocked expressions forming in recognition. A couple young children completely stopped walking just to stare, but nobody greeted them. Galinda began to feel supremely uncomfortable.

“Hey, Elphie?” She approached her friend, gently moving the tall girl’s long arms back down to her sides and tugging her out of the literal center of the street. Safely situated outside what seemed to be a bookstore, she released Elphaba and continued. “Spatial awareness.”

“Sometimes, I forget that you care.” At least she had the decency to look somewhat apologetic. “Wait. Am I embarrassing you?” Her words were flippant, but a genuine bit of fear flashed in her eyes.

“Not yet,” the blonde assured her.

“I’ve just… never had to think about it.” She gnawed on her thumbnail.

“Elphie, you worry too much!” Galinda was never one to harp on something so minor. “Anyways: no hat?”

Elphaba averted her eyes. “Let’s just say that I need to remain as inconspicuous as humanly possible if we’re going to even get within thirty feet of the building, let alone into this concert.” Galinda had to physically restrain herself from shouting.

“ _Is this ANOTHER crimes-related thing?_ ” she stage-whispered, eyes impossibly wide. Elphaba grimaced.

“I was an… ambitious child.”

“Don’t get me wrong, it’s refreshing to know that you’ve never once cared about authority—”

“Oh, no, I will admit to having a massive authority complex. I don’t respect the _law._ Lawmakers are nameless, faceless, and most likely dead. Law enforcement is corrupt and doesn’t target those who break the law; rather, those who they — and the system as a whole — personally don’t care for. On the other hand, authority figures are very much warm and conscious and can actively make me feel their disappointment.” She shuddered, recalling the one and only time she had caused Dr. Dillamond — who really did have the patience of a saint — to raise his quavery voice after she, in a fit of righteous anger, had snapped his favorite pencil. She hadn’t cried, but the awful feeling of tears in her nose and apologies cascading off her tongue still kept her up some nights. “Today, my sweet, we are avoiding the law.”

“Fun!” Galinda chirped, but then her face fell. “Should I have worn a sneakier outfit? Oh, but I don’t have any black clothes.”

“I wear enough black for the both of us,” the green girl chuckled. “You don’t have to change a thing. Although you might have to take your shoes off for a moment later.” The blonde quirked an eyebrow. “We’ll be doing a bit of climbing, nothing huge.”

“Climbing?” This time, Galinda did shout, and blushed when an old man shot her a nasty look.

Elphaba removed her hands from her ears. “Yes, climbing. You worry too much,” she repeated. “That’ll come _much_ later, though. There’s a few things I want to do, first.”

“Like what?” Galinda was bobbing on her tiptoes, attention diverted from her green girl’s dodgy past.

“Oh, places to go, people to meet,” the taller girl hummed, putting on a mischievous expression.

“That’s frustratingly vague; but please, continue.”

“All right!” And she took off down Main Street like a huge Bat, cloak flapping cartoonishly with every step. Galinda groaned and jogged after her, already cursing her shoe choice.

Elphaba led her blonde through the rapid-beating heart of town. Foot traffic stuttered around her as she bobbed and weaved through the crowds, shutting out all thoughts besides the route to her destination. The path practically glowed before her. She did stop for a beat to sniff the air outside the bakery, but once again turned on a dime and scooted around an elderly couple without so much as an “excuse me.” She’d all but forgotten about Galinda, who was frantically apologizing to multiple people while also practically sprinting to catch up.

As they sped down streets, side-stepping signs and carriages, the buildings began to noticeably degrade in quality. The gutters were rustier, rotted roof tiles dangled precariously overhead, and at some point, the once-stone road had crumbled into dirt. Finally, they came upon a signpost; and finally, Elphaba jerked to a halt as she grabbed it with her right hand and swung herself around to face Galinda, who had abandoned all sense of decorum and was openly whining about having to run “so damn far.”

“Spoilsport,” the green girl cackled, pretending that she, too, wasn’t out of breath. “We’re nearly there.”

“ _Why did you make me run like that?_ ” Galinda wheezed, doubling over. “I didn’t mean… ‘continue the journey.’” She raised a weary head and furrowed her brow. “Where even are we?”

“The outskirts, if you will. Technically, slums, but the residents work themselves to the bone to keep the infrastructure half-stable.” Elphaba swept her gaze over tin-roofed shacks, rickety wooden stilt houses, and the occasional sheltered aerie. “I spent a lot of time here as a kid.”

In stark contrast to the center of town, nobody was outside. A thin layer of grime was visible on almost every exposed surface, composed mostly of road-dirt. Releasing the signpost, Elphaba wiped her hand on her pants and offered her other hand to the blonde, who was regretting her clothing choices for at least the third time that day. They set out down the single road.

A pile of neatly-arranged feathers next to a bucket of fur caught Galinda’s eye; and, when they passed a series of untended, open-air stalls labelled “Nocturnal Market,” things began to fall into place. 

“Elphie,” she gasped in realization, “do _Animals_ live here?” The green girl nodded. 

“I imagine this clears up a few lingering questions about my ideals,” she said, smiling wryly. “I only say that because you’ve never quite seemed to understand why I sympathize with them so.”

“I thought it was because you’re green. Similar experiences with social rejection, and all that.”

“I– are you calling me a social reject?”

“Well… I mean, if you want to put it like th–”

“Your most _endearing_ trait is that you don’t apologize for being rude,” Elphaba sighed sarcastically. “I still haven’t forgotten that sad attempt at a makeover where you called me ugly six ways from Sunday and lied about being able to teach me how to play sports.” She wasn’t actually angry, of course, but the air was a little too still and her blonde’s squeaky, retroactive apologies provided warm noise to ease her nerves. “Nevertheless, I forgive you. But just this once,” she growled, betraying her amusement with an involuntary upward twitch of her lips.

“You mean, green thing!” Galinda sputtered, walking faster in annoyance. She caught up with the taller girl’s strides and pouted. “Stop looking so smug.” Elphaba continued to look smug.

The girls turned onto a side street and Elphaba pointed out a series of small shops, windows sparklingly clean and products organized more neatly than Galinda had ever seen.

“I know the owner of this one,” she said warmly, smirk softening into a nostalgic smile. “Her son used to hang out with me in school. We banded together when we could. Real force of nature, no pun intended. His name’s—”

 _Whump!_ An enormous shadow plummeted from an awning, cuffing Elphaba around the head with a pair of dun-colored wings.

“Calligan!” she shouted. Two reflective eyes snapped open and a small beak popped into a joyous smile. The Owl took off from a standing position, looped thrice around their heads, and landed with a triumphant hoot. The three stood facing each other. Galinda didn’t miss the flicking of his head down to the girls’ still-clasped hands.

“You’re back! It’s been ages!” Each of his words carried an individual gust of wind in the back of his throat. He once again approached the girls with his wings out, and headbutted Elphaba in the diaphragm before wrapping her up in a fluffy embrace.

Elphaba was flushed with excitement, grinning almost unnaturally wide. “This is Calligan Zno, professional asshole and Chief Dipshit of the community playground.”

“And this is Elphaba Thropp, professional hardass and my Second-Dipshit-in-Command,” he jabbed back, grinning without teeth. “You’re cute,” a talon flashed at Galinda, “and _you’re_ lucky as hell,” he addressed Elphaba, slapping her shoulder again with his huge wing. 

“And what exactly are you implying?” the green girl snarled, dropping Galinda’s hand and taking a menacing step towards her friend. Galinda could barely hold back laughter at Elphaba’s indignance.

“Well, I don’t know,” he hooted. “What exactly were all those letters implying?”

“Letters?” Galinda interjected, leaning into her Elphie’s side. “Do tell,” she beseeched the Owl boy, perhaps a bit too eagerly. He shook his tail feathers in delight.

“Oh, she wrote such wonderful things! _‘Calligan, could it be? Have I made… a friend?’_ Or, _‘Cal, I know girls wouldn’t touch you with a fifty-foot swamp branch, but how could I make conversation with my roommate so that she won’t think I’m insane?’_ ” He dodged a solid punch from Elphaba, less by virtue of his own agility and more because she was too flustered to aim properly. “Too slow, Baz. Short for Basil, by the way,” he told Galinda. “If you need more plant-themed nicknames, I’m your guy. Speaking of which, _‘Calligan, she called me an artichoke. It reminded me of you. Asshole.’_ I thought that one was particularly sweet.”

“Shut up, shut up, shut UP! You’re _awful,_ ” Elphaba shrieked, reaching up to tug down the brim of a hat that wasn’t there. She settled for burying her face in her hands instead, cheeks aflame.

“Aww, one more?” He didn’t wait for a response. “Fantastic. _‘If you get this letter, just know that I’ve left you Nothing,’_ capital N, of course, _‘in my will. Long story short, we went to grab tea from the cafeteria and she held my hand and I’m pretty sure I died, right next to the shitty old coffee creamer. But sweet Oz, I hope she does it again…’_ ” Calligan chortled. “Well, you seem to have it all figured out, Loverboy.”

“Hhhhhhh… why do you have these _memorized?_ ” the green girl wailed, face contorted into a pained grimace. “And don’t call me ‘Loverboy!’”

“Six years ago, under the red climbing bars. Don’t pretend you didn’t promise that you’d show me your date, if you ever got one. Loverboy. And it looks like you did! So, when I heard from your dad at church that you might come back, I put in a good few hours just to make sure you were _niiiiice_ and embarrassed just in case today was finally the day. And my preparations paid off, clearly.” He turned his head to his left where Galinda was bent double, cackling. “I’m glad _someone_ appreciates my dedication.”

“Oh, I _like_ you. And Elphie, that was–” she paused to swallow another laugh, “that was nearly a year ago! You’ve felt this way for that long?” 

The green girl was gently banging her head against the window. “I _told_ you that! And I Loathe you, Mister Calligan. Capital L, of course.”

“Capital L for Lov– aww, thanks,” he simpered, narrowly avoiding another punch. “And stop that. Mom just cleaned those.” Elphaba whirled around, struck with a new idea.

“Speaking of your mother, where is she?” she questioned, utterly desperate to change the subject. She looked around for the older Owl woman, but Calligan was the only Animal she’d spotted in the entire town thus far. “Matter of fact, where’s everyone?”

“Elphaba, Baz, _Elphie_ –”

“You _don’t_ get to call me that.” He started at her grave tone.

“Sorry. Anyways, it hasn’t been _that_ long. You already forgot half the town is nocturnal? But also,” he grimaced as much as his beak would allow, “it’s not exactly safe to be outside in the daytime anymore.” He swiveled his head to view either side of the street. “My day-sight’s garbage, so I probably shouldn’t be out here either. They come real fast and strike real hard, you know.”

“Those fuckers…” Elphaba trailed off, gritting her teeth. “I was wondering when it would hit here–”

“Not to interrupt,” Galinda interjected, “but what’s going on, exactly?”

“Another government crackdown on Animal freedoms, my lovely blonde acquaintance. Worst it’s been in years, frankly.” Calligan sighed and plucked at his chest feathers. “Look at me, talking like it’s not a huge systemic issue. Luckily, we’ve managed to avoid most of the violence, but everyone’s terrified.”

Galinda blanched and quickly checked behind her. “They can just take you? E-even right now?”

“What kind of tyrannical regime _wouldn’t_ actively subdue its subjects in broad daylight?” He sighed bitterly. “Come on. Let’s go inside. To answer your question, Elphaba, Mom’s down in the cellar preparing lunch.” He nudged the door open and they all entered the store, careful not to disturb the stacks of candles and coils of rope. Calligan fluttered up and slid the deadbolt closed in one chaotic whirl of feathers. “MA! Guess who’s here?” he shouted, rapping his talons on a hatch in the floor.

“Whooo?” she replied, muffled. Her son yanked the hatch open, and he and Elphaba leaned into the older Owl’s field of vision. “Oh!” She nearly dropped a packet of seasoning from her beak in surprise. Rushing around amidst shelves of product, she quickly swept some ingredients into a basket and clambered up the cellar ladder. “Oh, Elphaba, you rascal! You didn’t even tell me you were coming!” She fluffed up her feathers in delight, but restrained from copying her son’s over-enthusiastic greeting. “And who is _this?_ ” she cooed, gazing at Galinda with an appraising eye. “Could you be the roommate we’ve heard so much about? Oh, she writes about you in such a flattering manner! All ‘effervescent’ and ‘vivacious’ and other words that are exceptionally difficult for me to pronounce; but, if my son’s reaction is anything to go by, you’re living up to those descriptions. But there I go again, rambling on. My name is Ekke, as I’ve quite neglected to say.”

For all the praise Galinda was accustomed to receiving from others, she rarely experienced such sincerity behind the words. She blushed at the Owl woman’s speech and surreptitiously squeezed Elphaba’s hand in silent thanks.

“Well, I– thank you! It’s such a pleasure to meet you both!” The Owls grinned in tandem. “My name’s Galinda Upland, and I’m very curious as to how else _this_ one,” she bumped her shoulder into Elphaba’s, “has been waxing poetic about me.”

“Was once not enough?” the taller girl pleaded, leaning back against Galinda and looking up at the ceiling in shame. “Your son,” she addressed Ekke, “harangued me about my letter-writing habits not ten minutes ago.” The son in question proudly puffed his chest out. “I won’t stand for this!”

“Then sit,” Calligan shot back, sliding a stool into Elphaba’s shins. She buckled, cursing, and only Galinda’s grip on her hand stopped them both from completely toppling over. Girl and Owl began to snipe at each other, insults abound, while Galinda and Ekke watched in equal parts despair and amusement.

“So,” the blonde said quietly, “I take it they’ve known each other for a while?” 

Ekke chortled. “Ever since those early school days. My memory’s a bit hazy, but I do believe they met on the church roof.”

“That makes… almost too much sense.” Galinda was trying to distract herself from the frankly hilarious scene of Calligan slapping his friend around. “She’s accustomed me to surprises, let’s just say that.”

“Absolutely. She came into the shop with her own homemade flying machine, once. Both of them — because of _course_ my son was in on this — swore up and down that it worked. I took it away, though; mother’s intuition. And, next thing you know, something snaps and I have a pile of rubber bands and scrap metal scattered all over the floor.” The woman shook her head at the memory. “Poor girl. I bet she still wants to fly. They tried so many times, but there’s a reason we have hollow bones.” She looked back on the scuffle. “Hey– you’re nearly eighteen! Do I really need to remind you not to climb my rafters? And you! This is a non-violent household! Put those wings away or I’ll pluck ’em clean!” The yell was tinged with the sort of harsh affection only a mother could provide.

Elphaba dropped from the ceiling, looking quite put out. “I had no choice!” she rebutted, shaking a few feathers out of her hair. “It’s none but Nature’s fault I was born without a weapon.”

Calligan hooted with laughter, feinting one last wingbeat. “Man, I forgot how fun that was.”

“Oh, I’ll show you _fun–_ ”

“BOTH of you,” Ekke commanded, “stand down. And get outside! I think you’ll be alright as long as there’s a group of you.”

“Ma–”

“They’ve only taken us alone so far. It’s better with humans, anyhow. Just please,” she sighed, “ _please_ get out of the house for a minute. Go, go on!” She shooed the pair, still bickering, out the door and turned to the blonde. “It’s been lovely meeting you, Miss Galinda, truly.”

“Oh, you as well! Take ca– huh?”

The Owl woman hooked her claw around Galinda’s ankle and pulled her in, whispering sternly. “It’s people like us that keep people like her afloat, you know. So keep doing whatever you’re doing. Keep keeping her happy. Have you two hashed things out, romantically?” Small nod. “Oh, _finally._ ” Ekke released the blonde, eyes full of kindness. “She loves you to bits, and she’d never admit it. Wait here for a moment, will you?” She hastily waddled behind the counter and whisked an opened envelope out from a stuffed box. “She really does write such sweet things about you. Give this a look-over when she gets moody, or if you’re really in dire straits.”

Galinda cocked her head, unsure. “This is a bit personal, no?”

“She’d say all of it if she could, trust me. Sometimes words don’t come easy to her, you know?” Ekke brushed the blonde’s back with a reassuring wing. “I practically raised the girl. She’d be perfectly fine with you reading this.”

Galinda thought back to all the times she and Elphaba had fought, and all the little notes stuck to her belongings afterward. Never direct apologies, but always thoughtful. She recalled the letters she had received over the winter holiday bemoaning the temperature of their room, and how poetically they had been written. Quite unlike the green girl’s typical abrasive tone. “I suppose… I suppose writing _is_ easier for her,” she conceded. “Um… thank you, really. Deeply.” She put as much heart as she could muster into her words and carefully tucked the letter into her handbag.

“Don’t worry about a thing, dear,” the older woman said. “You’d better go catch up to them before they leave you in the dust, though. Have fun!” She waved from the porch as Galinda jogged down the road, hollering for her travelling companions.

“You guys! Slow down! Please!”

They turned around simultaneously, watching the blonde struggle to close the gap. Calligan turned his head to look at his friend, and suppressed a mighty laugh. Elphaba was gazing upon her friend with a fondness he’d never actually witnessed.

“Damn,” he muttered. “You got it _bad._ ”

“I’ll tape your stupid beak shut,” she growled. “We are no longer in your ‘non-violent household,’ and I shall do as I please.”

He hopped out of her reach with a shit-eating grin. “You guys kiss yet? Wouldn’t be a teen romance without a romantic smooch or two.”

“No!” She hugged herself and turned away. “But I-I’ll… notify you when it happens. Now _shut up,_ she’s almost here.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> pre-teen hooligan elphaba? yes please  
> they'll get their music date soon don't worry!!! i'm v excited to write a symphony scene b/c i'm a classical musician so. you bet ur ass this'll have some juicy music words in it AND it'll be the epitome of "be gay do crimes"
> 
> anyways don't forget to like comment and subscribe ahahaha


	9. Peregrination

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm back! and here it is! another interstitial chapter!  
> anyways, i love you guys and i hope you enjoy <3

Galinda caught up to the pair, discreetly massaging a stitch in her side. “Thanks for waiting,” she griped. “Is this going to be a recurring theme, you two rushing ahead whilst I _suffer?_ I wasn’t made for the sports life, I’m afraid.”

“Suffering is an intrinsic part of the human experience,” Elphaba teased. “May I remind you who you’re complaining to?”

“That’s a false equivalence and you know it,” the blonde retorted, pouting. Elphaba grabbed her hand and gently squeezed it.

“Perhaps if we d-do this, you won’t have such a problem keeping up,” she muttered, ignoring Calligan’s suggestive hoots. “It’s… more practical.”

Galinda patted the back of her hand in a sarcastic, one-handed facsimile of applause. “Oh, of course. A fantastic tactical move.” She did an about-face, snapping herself upright and preparing to march. “Lead the way, Commander Thropp.”

Elphaba, well and flustered, hesitated for one more moment to remember where they were headed. _Concert Hall. No more distractions._ She began walking abruptly, nearly yanking Galinda off her feet, and motioned for Calligan to follow suit. He hopped dutifully alongside her as they all proceeded back into town, but fell behind as more and more people started to throw suspicious glances his way.

“So,” he hooted, trying to laugh it off. “You were being awfully presumptuous back there, Baz.”

“Presumptuous how?”

“Oh, you know. ‘When it happens’ or something like that.” He made air-quotes with one taloned foot. “That’s the kind of confidence I like to see.”

“When what happens?” Galinda queried. 

Elphaba cycled through her recent memories, but realized the reference far too late. “Nothing! Nothing, when nothing happens,” the green girl half-shouted, cutting both of them off. “I-it’s not important.” Gripping the blonde’s hand a little tighter, she glared at Calligan. “You really do exist solely to torment me, you absolute _asshole_ .” People had begun to stare more pointedly. Elphaba, feeling those eyes on her back, pulled both Owl and girl close to her sides and drew herself up to her full height. “Let’s keep moving before someone decides to pluck you naked and string you up in the butcher’s window,” she muttered, sweeping a disapproving gaze over the gathered crowd. Almost comically, the onlookers stepped back as her line of vision passed over them. She added a little snarl to the motion, curling her lip and flashing a single fang. _Get the fuck out of my way._

The little hairs on Galinda’s forearms stood up; the street had gone eerily silent.

“Well? What are you looking at?” The green girl’s abrasive, sudden shout made several people jump; they began to turn their backs on the trio, once again busying themselves with their menial daily tasks. The low drone of busy-street conversation rose to compete with the buzzing in Elphaba’s head. She was squeezing Galinda’s hand to the point of pain now, striding purposefully through the street and drawing Calligan farther away from the multitudes.

“Elphie?”

“Baz?” the blonde and the Owl asked, simultaneously. “Are you alright?”

Her face twisted in response, nothing but an exasperated growl passing her lips. Her companions made eye contact behind her back; and no sooner had Galinda dug in her heels — forcing the green girl to an abrupt halt — than Calligan had body-checked them both into an alleyway.

“Doesn’t it hurt?” the blonde beseeched him, momentarily forgetting the circumstances. “Just throwing your fluffy little self around like that?”

“Oh, don’t worry about me; I’m full of rocks.”

“Gastroliths,” Elphaba butted in, “and this is a waste of time.” She made to return to her route, but in her haste, forgot that she and Galinda were still interlocked. The blonde stumbled, but held fast.

“You don’t normally get that worked up when people stare,” she said, running her thumb over green knuckles. “Exasperated, sure, but–”

“Seconded,” Calligan piped up. “Shake it off like you used to; you’re freaking me out.”

“It’s different when…” Elphaba trailed off, grasping at words. “I–”

“Come on, spit it out,” the Owl griped. “Don’t tell me that college gave you a _filter._ ”

“Fine! It’s different when it’s you!” she yelled to her shoes. “Oz _damn._ Th-there, you happy? I hate it when people stare at you. Both of you. It’s awful. And it’s all to do with me.” Her bitten-short nails scraped at the fabric of her cloak.

“Those dirty looks are all for me, Elphaba. Not you,” the Owl sighed. “It’s gotten to the point where the baker won’t even say hi to Mom anymore.” He shook his head, haws clouding his pupils in the avian version of a disappointed slow blink. “Let’s just go wherever you gotta go while it’s still light, and talk about this later. Patrols start at dusk.” The decisiveness in his tone struck a familiar chord in Galinda, warming her heart as she realized just how closely together he and Elphaba had really grown up. Their conflict resolution skills were nearly identical, which — and she giggled at the thought — did _not_ necessarily make them good. Case in point: Elphaba, who had started towards the Concert Hall once more, was still frowning deeply.

The more disgruntled townspeople they passed, the faster Calligan began to move, until he was well ahead. Gazing up at the skyline, he spotted the Hall’s roof: enormous, copper-plated, and oddly-shaped. Hooting to Elphaba that they were _almost there, slowpokes,_ he backtracked towards her for a brief moment and swept his wing in its general direction; staring at the wonky building, they shared wry smiles, products of bygones and childhood shenanigans.

The classic shops had segued into fancier and fancier establishments that seemed to have siphoned all the color out of the rest of the town for their own usage. They always hurt Elphaba’s eyes to look at for prolonged stretches of time. She recalled Morrible’s fantastical descriptions of the Emerald City, where high-society youths attended gaudy debutante balls in the daylight and even gaudier afterparties, which were always thrown as if the sun had died and the night would last forever.

In the center of a nigh-radial arrangement of such businesses too pretentious for their own good (and certainly too upscale for Rush Margins) lay the object of Elphaba’s desires: the Concert Hall. At last! Its true name had been lost to time long before she had ever existed. It didn’t really need a name anyways, she figured, it being the only concert hall within a fifty-mile radius.

“Welcome!” Elphaba yelped excitedly, having either hidden or forgotten about her prior unease. “We’re here! And well before dusk, of course.” Of course; hidden. One would expect nothing less.

“Oh wow! It’s–” Galinda, noticing the truly, absolutely, undeniably strange roof, paused her praise dead in its tracks. “It’s…” she fumbled for a long moment, cheeks heating up as Elphaba nailed her with an expectant, gleeful smile. After a few agonizing seconds, she settled on, “It’s fascinatingly avant-garde!”

“Oh, _definitely,_ ” Calligan snorted, blocking the green girl’s view of them with a wing. “You know,” he whispered. “You can say it looks like shit. I’ll back you up.”

“It’s not… that bad,” Galinda grimaced. “There’s usually a reason for these types of things. Hey, Elphie?” she chirped, giggling at how the green girl snapped to attention. “What’s the deal with the roof? Some sort of acoustics shenanigans, right?”

“Precisely!” Elphaba’s hands fluttered up near her shoulders as she bounced on the balls of her feet. “I might still explain it to you, regardless. It’s the newest part of the building, constructed roughly fifteen years ago, just prior to the…”

Calligan zoned out; he’d heard the story — and he figured this was lowballing the amount — probably twenty times. In the distance, he spotted a frivolous, forest-green coat with enormous gold lapels draped over a café chair. _Well, shit._ The rifle propped up next to it only exacerbated his worry.

“Come on, lovebirds. Let’s get fucking _moving._ ” He hopped along the road, girls trailing close behind, and had almost made it to the Hall’s tiny piazza before he was nearly snatched off his feet. Beating his wings in his assailant’s general direction, he tumbled backwards and crashed into Galinda’s ankles. She righted him, dusting off his feathers, and they both gazed up at the caster of the shadow. The blonde subconsciously moved herself in front of the Owl, scowling with her hand outstretched.

“Well, well, well. If it isn’t Felony and Misdemeanor.” A tawny-haired Munchkin caught Elphaba and Calligan in his distrustful stare. He jabbed his finger at the Owl. “You’ve been blessedly quiet, probably because _you_ ,” a rather rude gesture to the green girl, “decided to skip town.”

“I went to _college_ , Dek,” she sighed. “Also, I don’t even live here.”

“Did I ask?” He thumped a nightstick against his thigh, and only then did Galinda realize he was clothed in a security guard’s uniform.

“Excuse me, sir? Can _I_ ask what _exactly_ is the matter?” she said icily.

“Keep quiet, blondie. As far as I’m concerned, you’re in direct association with these two, who _know_ that they…” he paused to whip out a notebook stuffed with small slips of paper. “Hold on. Ah! Aren’t allowed within– oh, yeah. Thirty feet of this building. Amongst other things.” He dragged his foot across the cobblestones, marking out an imaginary perimeter. Elphaba grimaced at Galinda: _I wasn’t joking_.

“We’re not doing anything,” she muttered, quite unconvincingly. “I’m just showing her around. So fuck off.” She whispered that last part and eyed Dek, trying to gauge if he’d heard. Considering that he wasn’t trying to beat her head in with his precious truncheon, she reckoned he hadn’t.

“Well, ‘show her around’ somewhere else.” He stepped forward in an attempt to be threatening, but only brought his face uncomfortably close to the wonky third button on Elphaba’s only nice shirt. She stood her ground as he glowered up at her. She simply bent her knees and continued smirking, but on his level this time. “Now, see, this is what we’re _not_ going to do,” he growled, an angry flush smudging his cheeks. She raised an eyebrow; he furrowed his.

“You know, I’m not surprised you’re working this job,” Elphaba said, voice low and dark. “First, a tyrannical hall monitor, and now a petty security guard for the one building nobody cares enough to break into. Your capacity for change always _was_ far outsized by those self-aggrandizing tendencies of yours. Go bother some other innocent civilians; or, perhaps, pester your boss for a promotion, seeing as he clearly doesn’t respect you enough at the moment.” She tensed her shoulders in anticipation of him finally lashing out, but she got lucky once again as he dropped the baton in anger.

Instead, Dek simply shoved her back and balled his hands into fists, transitioning into the ghost of a fighting stance. “You’re a real ass, you know that?” He faked a punch, and laughed harshly as the green girl flinched.

“I don’t think you’re supposed to be fighting random kids on the street,” she barked, trying to still her hand that had begun to tremble. “Do your job and leave us alone.”

“Don’t tell me what to do, you little shit!”

“ _Little?_ Oh, please. You massive, massive hypocrite.” The situation was rapidly escalating towards an actual, physical fight; but, before anything exciting could happen, Elphaba felt herself being dragged backwards by two small hands and a sharp beak.

“Steady on, Elphie,” Galinda muttered. “You know this guy?”

“Obviously,” the green girl huffed, swatting Calligan’s mouth off of her arm. “I also know that he’s currently on the biggest power trip of his life.” Unconsciously, she leaned into Galinda’s touch and glared daggers at Dek. He was scrambling around to pick up his weapon, glowing with either anger at being shown up or pride that the trio had finally retreated to an appropriate distance. “I suppose if you want context, he used to beat me up on alternate Thursdays. I appreciated the scheduling. The bruises, less so.”

“’Course, he was never alone,” Calligan butted in, vehemently gesturing to the rifle and jacket at the café, “and I think he still isn’t. And don’t say, ‘well, there’s a huge difference between him and an actual guardsman,’ because a cop is a cop and they _all_ want to see you suffer.” Elphaba nodded gravely.

“Would you look at that,” she hissed. “They’ve brought the whole armory, it seems.” Indeed, the Munchkin man was glancing between the trio and the abandoned soldier’s equipment. “Gonna take my advice and go cry to your boss?” she taunted him. “It would be a shame if you had to tell him that you couldn’t handle a girl, an Owl, and an aberration.”

Dek snorted like a great boar but visibly restrained himself from charging the taller girl, as people were beginning to stare. “You’re fucking insufferable!” he squealed, rattling a fistful of stones in his palm. Elphaba grinned as smugly as she could, putting the tip of her boot right up against that thirty-foot boundary line; he reflexively chucked a few at her, but missed and instead beaned Calligan directly in the forehead. His resounding hoot caught the attention of another guard, who paused in chewing his sweet bun to scan the area. His eyes roved over the crowd, and Calligan was forced to scramble behind Galinda once more.

“Okay, that’s _enough!_ ” the Owl panicked. “I’m leaving before someone decides to fucking kill me! Have fun, Elphaba; it was lovely meeting you, Galinda; choke on a dick and die, Dek.” He took to the skies quick as a flash, the gust of wind created by his massive wings ruffling Galinda’s skirt. By the time the guards had begun to gather, Calligan was but a speck on the horizon.

Elphaba grabbed her blonde’s hand once more and slipped around a corner. She gnawed on her lower lip, gazing at the Owl’s quickly-disappearing form. “That may have not been the best course of action, now that I think about it.”

“They’re not going to catch him, are they?”

“He’ll be fine, we– _he’s_ been avoiding authorities for years. Besides, he’s a smart guy; didn’t let them see his face. Not to mention that Dek doesn’t have enough influence over his co-bastards — well, over anyone, really — to organize a search effort for him.” They both sighed, which made Elphaba chuckle despite herself. “ _We,_ on the other hand, are going to have a significantly harder time getting into this venue now that he knows I’m here.”

“Whatever happens,” Galinda declared, “I promise that I won’t let you get arrested.”

“And I, the same,” the green girl smiled, and softly brushed her thumb along the blonde’s cheekbone. “I suppose you’re not opposed to ah… a small bit of trickery, misdirection, general mischief? Perhaps a shenanigan or two?”

Galinda answered by pressing a light kiss to Elphaba’s fingertips. “Lead the way, Elphie. I’ll be right behind you, close as I can.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> COMMENT PLEASE nothing makes me happier :0
> 
> ... maybe i should start doing a bad youtuber intro. like "ahaha guys don't forget to like, comment, subscribe for more content. and another thing: according to my channel statistics, only 69.42% of you who watch my videos are subbed and i'd really appreckjgfdhshi"


	10. Osculation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i think you guys are gonna like this one :)
> 
> PLEASE comment pl,,,ease fcuking comment i lov interactning w all of you!! :,))))

The back wall of a clothing store certainly wasn’t the most romantic place to get lost in someone’s eyes, but Elphaba had a knack for making do under subpar circumstances. Such promises of mutual protection weren’t rare occurrences, but the intent behind each one past and all ones future had finally been revealed as something far more ardent and earnest. Here, caressing Galinda’s cheek, she focused simply on that new breed of loyalty; that little care-wrought fish hook embedded in her ribcage that rent her pre-established moral horizons asunder. She tucked a curl or two behind the shell of her blonde’s ear, marvelling at the way her fingers wound so easily into the strands and how quick Galinda was to envelop her in a tight hug. Her hand paused a bit behind Galinda’s temple like a weird, sentient hairclip. They had been moving backwards, apparently rather slowly, and now her cloak fabric began to catch on the rough brick behind them. A willing prisoner of those small, pale arms, Elphaba relaxed into the soothing pressure. Gazing down at half-lidded blue eyes, a sudden shyness speared her through the shoulder as if some angry deity had decided to finally strike her down; her arm fell, slack, and wended instead around her torso in a closing-off motion.

“Elphie?” came a murmur as Galinda pulled back slightly. “Somethin’ wrong?”

She tried to respond, but all that left her mouth was a very uncharacteristic nervous laugh. A chortle, even. “I-it’s _hhh_ …ho-hot in here,” she sputtered, flushing. 

Galinda fully released her hold on Elphaba and stepped back, scrutinizing her. “We’re… outside,” she said. “Ooh, wait! Are you having a stroke?”

Now that they weren’t quite so close, her head began to clear. “You sound _far_ too excited about that prospect,” the taller girl sighed, her momentary bashfulness dissipating slightly. She stretched, rising onto her tiptoes and reaching for the clouds, in an attempt to shiver her remaining nerves out.

Galinda giggled at the way Elphaba’s wrists poked out of her sleeves and how her nose crinkled as she extended her body, taut as a suspension bridge cable. “Well, it would really ruin the mood if you died whenever I got close to you.”

“That it would, my sweet.” The cooling afternoon breeze rustled through her un-braided hair, tangling a few strands around her glasses’s right earpiece. “My sweet…” she repeated, trailing off. Her words caught the wind as well, dipping and twirling through the air until they were caught up in the town’s Gordian knot of noise. Every so often, she would say these things — endearing, genuine compliments and heartfelt monikers and phrases of that ilk — in such a manner; not particularly quietly, mind you, but without the explicit intent of them being heard or acknowledged. And was Galinda ever glad that she’d chosen to listen.

She strode closer once again, reaching as high as she could and catching Elphaba’s lissome wrists on their way down to her pockets. Using this action to peel her off the wall, she moved them both in a little dance, swinging their joined hands around and hopping from toe to toe. It was strikingly similar to how they’d first begun to understand each other: that fateful night in the Ozdust ballroom where Elphaba had thrown away the last of her cares and Galinda had experienced remorse for the first time in her life. She liked to think they had both grown since then. Emotionally, at least. As they promenaded through the alley, Elphaba still flailed about like a marionette piloted by a half-conscious puppeteer; or, perhaps, a particularly sloppily-reanimated skeleton, courtesy of the world’s most half-hearted necromancer. Galinda had become quite adept at dodging stray limbs throughout their cohabitation, so she simply laughed and incorporated the bobbing and weaving into their little crooked waltz.

They swirled to a halt as Galinda, in a moment of intense concentration, whipped Elphaba around by the arm and dipped her low before she could blink. Green hands instinctually latched onto her shoulders, shifting her balance, but she’d invested too many hours of her youth into dance classes to be anywhere near fazed. Nevertheless, the girls froze there, eyes burning into each other with the sort of prolonged eye contact that usually left Elphaba feeling far too exposed and uncomfortable; and thus, was avoided whenever possible. But here, now, suspended in her dearest friend’s embrace, she found she couldn’t look away.

“Don’t let go,” she whispered, face scrunching up as she realized how very _pleading_ that had sounded. “I-I mean, if you drop me and I crack my head open on these Oz-damned cobblestones, consider your concert ah… attendance revoked.”

“Do you really think I’d do that?” Galinda challenged, but she did bend over even further. “Really, Elphie, what do you take me for? A traitor?”

“You’ve been known to be slippery, at times.” Elphaba huffed and squirmed a bit, as blood was beginning to rush to her head. “Release me, fiend.”

“So many mixed messages,” the blonde retorted playfully, but complied, righting them both. Elphaba immediately broke their eye contact; physically, though, their limbs and torsos remained closely entwined in a flesh-and-fabric dovetail joint. “Do you plan on holding me like this forever?” she asked much more softly, all traces of sarcasm scrubbed from her tone. Indeed, she found herself quite unable to look her green girl in the face without losing her nerve. “Because I… I wouldn’t mind that.” She thudded her head into Elphaba’s sternum. “You know, you were right, it is a bit hot in here,” she babbled, suddenly self-conscious of her words.

Elphaba untangled herself and held her blonde at arm’s length. “Are _you_ okay?” she inquired, cocking her head. “Tongue-tied-ness certainly doesn’t befall you often.” Pale red dusting her cheeks, Galinda giggled dopily and stuck out her tongue, trying to roll it. She couldn’t.

“You make me stupid, Elphie,” she bemoaned, slackening her torso and bending over backwards. Elphaba’s grip on her hands immediately tightened. She smiled at the cobblestones and dirt.

“Well, it’s a good thing you’re so pretty, then. Otherwise, how _would_ we get anywhere in this world, the two of us,” Elphaba deadpanned. “Come off it, my sweet. You’ve got plenty brains, just a terrible sense of when to use them. I mean, look at you.” She leaned back, counterbalancing the blonde, and eventually tugged her back to an upright state. “Sharp as a tack when it comes to knowing whether a buttress is flying or not, but can’t remember how to open the pickle jar sometimes. I care for you all the same, of course,” she added, as if that were so obvious it barely needed to be clarified. “Are we going to mope about in alleyways ’til we rot? I’m not opposed to that, but…”

Galinda stood mutely for a moment, head swirling with all her green girl’s words. “I was just joking,” she tried to say, but what came out instead was, “You think I’m smart?”

“Oh, as anything,” Elphaba asserted. “In _astoundingly_ different areas than I, but smart nonetheless. You know I’m not one for platitudes. I’ll admit I didn’t think much of you when we met, but… well, I do believe we’re both aware of how the situation’s changed since then.” She squeezed Galinda’s hand for emphasis.

Foot traffic rumbled past, almost — but not quite — covering up Galinda’s little sniffle. Elphaba’s eyes grew impossibly wide at the sound, and both her heart and thoughts immediately began to try and outrun each other. Reaching forward without any sort of plan in mind, she cupped her blonde’s chin and furrowed her brow.

“Are you crying? Have I hurt you again?” she worried. “Oh, my sweet, please. Um, don’t? Uhh… wow.” _I really am terrible at this._ “Hmm… something amusing, perhaps… ah! Do you want to hear about the time I fell through a ceiling? It’s a lot funnier than it sounds–” Galinda cut her off with a quivering — but also sunny and elated — laugh.

“Just happy tears, Elphie.” She smiled up shakily at her green girl. “I don’t hear that often. That people actually gi-give a damn about what’s _inside_ my head.” Her voice wobbled again.

“You’re many things; ‘profoundly stupid’ is not, and has never been, one of them.” Elphaba closed her eyes in conviction, curling her unoccupied hand into a fist over her heart. “And I’ve never been a good liar, so you have my word on that.”

“Well, yes,” Galinda chuckled, earning herself a light smack to the shoulder.

The girls gazed into each other's eyes once more as reality began to fade out. There they were, right back where they’d begun, suspended in time — until Elphaba’s stomach growled, loud enough to snap them out of their reverie.

“That’s what I’ve been forgetting!” Galinda exclaimed, slamming a fist down into her palm. “You wait– nope, don’t say a _word._ You wait right here. I’ll be right back!” She trotted into the very same café that housed the Wizard’s guards.

Elphaba’s brain immediately kicked into overdrive. Rationally, she knew Dek wasn’t in there and thus had no way of either recognizing or apprehending Galinda; and on what grounds could he, anyways? This didn’t stop her from jumping back and forth from conclusion to conclusion, pacing around the alleyway until she was completely lost in a dimension of anxieties and hypotheticals drawn from scraps of thought. Before she could register her own body’s movement, she found herself flinging open the café door and crying, “Galinda,” scaring the poor cashier out of his wits and turning more than a few heads.

“Yes?” The blonde had started at the noise, but turned around coolly. One of Elphaba’s hands was tapping out a double-time rhythm on the doorframe while the other was wringing the hem of her shirt so hard it nearly ripped. Even from a distance, Galinda could see her jaw clenched painfully and the twitch in her shoulders whenever someone moved. Galinda knew she was terrified, although it was unclear why, but to the other patrons she must have seemed completely mad. The blonde smiled apologetically at the man behind the register and quickly snatched the pastries she had bought. She hurried over to her green girl. “I’m perfectly alright, Elphaba,” she placated, laying one hand on her green girl’s arm and leading them both back to the alley — their alley, as her optimistic side had begun to consider it. “Hey, hey.” She intercepted a green wrist on its way to its owner’s mouth. “Chew on this, instead.” Elphaba took the bread roll with trepidation, ignoring it for a moment while she frantically scanned the blonde. 

“Nobody tried to hurt you? Or…or-or arrest you, or anything?”

“No? Why would they?” Galinda was legitimately confused.

“No reason, apparently,” Elphaba mumbled, quite ashamed of herself. “I’ve just been floundering about in my head, like always.” She nibbled at her treat, hanging her head. “Got worked up over nothing. Again.” 

Galinda nudged her shoulder cheerfully. “Aww, don’t be so glum. I’m not completely helpless, but it’s nice to know that you’d take on an entire bistro for me.” She drew back Elphaba’s curtains of hair, eager to see her face, and caught the tail end of a soft smile hidden behind purposeful chewing.

Elphaba wolfed down the rest of the roll in a matter of seconds, finally realizing just how hungry she’d been. She glanced down at Galinda’s scone several times in quick succession, and the blonde finally relented; she broke off a large piece, admonishing her green girl to remember two things: eat more often, and bread only counts sometimes.

“Counts right now,” Elphaba replied, half of her share already in her mouth. Galinda stared at her expectantly. “ _Ach!_ Mnyes–” she rushed to swallow. “Thank you.” They snacked in silence for a good while, savoring both the food and companionship while the sun fell lower and lower.

Finally, Calligan’s feared dusk was nearly upon them, signalled by a shift in the town’s very energy. The warbles of children faded from the streets as they were called for dinner, replaced by the grumbling collective baritone of corporate-weary laborers on their ways home. Both girls gazed up at the darkening sky, but Elphaba remarked that the stars would be practically invisible because of all the light pollution. She scowled at the shiny new lampposts adorning the roads.

“These shops are bright enough. Money could’ve gone to the Animals, but of course it didn’t. You know, you used to be able to see the stars if you climbed up that gutter and tilted your head just the right– OH!” Her rant was interrupted by a fantastic chord that boomed out over the square. “Oh, it’s happening! Galinda, quickly, find somewhere to throw that bag away.” She jumped to her feet with a manic smile, clenching and releasing her fists. “The last-minute rehearsals are starting, which means they’ll start letting people in in about twenty minutes, which means we’ll have to wait about thirty from now to catch the maximum influx of patrons, which means we can have the highest chances of sneaking in unnoticed. Any questions?” She rocked back and forth, bouncing each time she came to her toes.

“What happens once we’re inside?”

“ _Chaos,_ ” Elphaba intoned, but her eyes twinkled with mirth. “I know where to go, so just stay close.” Her hands shot up near her ears and curled into claw-like shapes, and she made little excited trilling noises behind her teeth.

“Thirty minutes,” Galinda drawled, smiling fondly at the taller girl. “Can you even wait that long, I wonder? You might just take off into the sky, at this rate.” Elphaba blushed harshly and immediately clamped down on both of her hands, stilling their flapping. “Oh no, Elphie! I’m not poking fun!” Galinda reassured her. “Don’t stop,” she insisted. “Not on my account, at least. I happen to think it’s very cute, actually.”

Reluctantly, Elphaba’s hands began moving again with renewed vigor. She took to her former path and paced around the alley, steps interspersed with skips against a soundtrack of short, eager growls. Galinda watched, as she often did, bobbing her head in time with Elphaba’s stride. After a few minutes, she wandered to observe the steady stream of patrons congregating around the Hall: a motley collection of townspeople, nondescript and practically monolithic. The ticket-taker near the entrance moved methodically, never rushing or slowing, and the crowd began to swell in size around him and his booth.

“Now’s our chance.” Galinda started. Elphaba had popped up behind her, radiating excitement. “Hmm… don’t want you to attract attention… oh! Stand still, if you would?” Her hands glowed faintly with excess energy as she fumbled to undo her cloak. Finally conquering the knot, she whisked it around and settled it on Galinda’s shoulders. “Hold on… and… there!” She stood back, evaluating the look. “Yes, you’ll be much less conspicuous.”

Galinda twisted her shoulders from side to side, feeling the fabric swirl around her feet. “Won’t I get it dirty?”

“Not any dirtier than I have; trust me, it’s easily washed. Try on the hood!” Elphaba waved her cares away with the flick of a wrist, covering her blonde’s head in a flash. Galinda peeped out from the shadow.

“It’ll ruin my hair if I wear it like this,” she lamented, shucking the hood and checking the staying power of the ribbon that held her curls in place. It immediately unravelled into her palm. “Well, there goes _that_ hairdo.” She tossed her head back, expertly tucking the rest of her hair behind her ears, and was suddenly struck with a fantastic idea. “Oh, _Elphie!_ ” she burst out, eyes wide and smile wider. “Stay right there; I’m returning the favor!”

Galinda made quick work of a rudimentary ponytail, not missing the way her green girl melted into the touch. Turning Elphaba to face her, she tucked and fiddled with a few remaining pieces of hair until she was satisfied.

“Ooh! Take a _gander,_ honk honk!” She whipped open her compact mirror and squeezed Elphaba close. “You look so nice!”

“I look like Fiyero,” Elphaba mused. Her expression was unreadable as she scrutinized the style from multiple angles.

“I mean, that’s who I was referencing, ye– wait… you don’t like it?” Galinda’s face fell.

“Quite the opposite, actually,” the green girl murmured, marvelling at the effortless masculinity she had suddenly begun to effuse. “I do believe I rather enjoy this.” Her shoulders, typically slumped, instinctually straightened; she held her head higher than anyone had ever told her she had the right to.

The odd street-lamp glow highlighted all the right regions of Elphaba’s face: a jawline sharper than her teeth and gleaming eyes, set atop a lithe frame that completed a truly handsome image. A slight tremor — prompted by an emotion she couldn’t quite identify — ran through her as she handed the mirror back to Galinda and tucked her hands into her pockets.

“You look good,” the blonde breathed. “I mean, you always do, but–” she broke off, covering her flushed cheeks. “Oh, I don’t know!” A warbling, nervous laugh. Elphaba grinned sharkishly and leaned into her blonde’s flustered state. 

“Do I… _confuse_ you?” she rasped, infusing her tone with a crude imitation of Fiyero’s natural swagger. This, paired with an attempted seductive wink, elicited a good chuckle from Galinda. Elphaba laughed, too, boisterously; fangs bared, buoyed by a newly-hatched sense of euphoria.

Galinda was blindsided by the sudden, fervid curiosity about what getting bitten might feel like.

Well and truly astounded at herself, her mirth trailed off and she simply stood, wide-eyed, and began to think. Oh, did she ever think. She thought so hard, in fact, that she couldn’t feel Elphaba shaking her for a good thirty seconds.

“Galinda!” The blonde finally returned from all nine of the clouds she was deliriously prancing on. “Galinda, what happened?”

“I-” she cleared her throat. “I was… thinking, that’s all.”

“ _THINKING?_ ” Elphaba shrilled, “I thought you had _died!_ What the hell were you thinking about that could render you cata-fucking-tonic?”

Galinda snickered, knowing her answer would drive Elphaba absolutely hopping mad. “Oh, nothing important.”

“FU–” the bony ends of green fingers dug painfully into pale upper arms. “Okay. Alright.” Elphaba exhaled loudly through her nose and relinquished her grip. “Well, then, notify me the next time you feel like you might start ‘thinking.’ Scared me half to death,” she groused. Bestowing a propitiatory head-pat onto her green girl, Galinda acquiesced.

“I’m _thinking_ that I want to go inside now,” she quipped, tugging Elphaba into the street. They turned to face the Concert Hall and joined the multitudes, Elphaba ushering her blonde to a very specific area behind the ticket booth.

“Put the hood on, my sweet,” she instructed, gently flicking the fabric of the cloak. “Then just duck your head and go.”

“And they won’t see me?”

“Most likely not. But you’re certainly cute enough to talk your way out of trouble, correct?” Galinda’s resulting smile sent waves of warmth coursing through Elphaba’s body. “W-well. I’ll take that a… as a yes.” Galinda nodded and ducked her head, darting around the line and straight through the worn double doors. The ushers, sleepy young men who were just looking to earn a quick buck, barely glanced up at her entrance. She stood, momentarily mesmerized by the glow of friendly candlelight, and began to scan the area for her friend.

Elphaba sometimes wondered how she could be so scrutinized one minute but completely neglected the next. However, this was currently working to her advantage: in the low light, nobody could discern her verdigris, and therefore they paid her not an iota of thought. She slipped into the shadows cast by great columns, carving swiftly through the dark with her memory-forged path, and slunk past the ushers. Well-practiced in the art of walking quietly, she snuck up behind a cloaked figure and snickered before clamping her large hands on its shoulders. Galinda’s shriek was muffled by the growing noise of excited (paying) attendees.

“What on _earth–_ ELPHABA!” she admonished, scowling as her green girl cackled. “How about I leave _you_ alone in a strange location, do a creepy little laugh, and then jump on _your_ back, huh?”

“Couldn’t resist,” Elphaba wheezed, squeezing Galinda’s hand in apology. “Come on, let’s go!”

For as out-of-place a pair as the girls were, Elphaba’s disconcertingly-extensive knowledge of where to stand to avoid being seen had them advancing down a small hallway in a matter of seconds.

“Wasn’t that… locked?” Galinda inquired, in reference to the door they’d breezed through moments ago. Elphaba arched an eyebrow.

“Don’t worry about it.”

They descended a stone staircase into a low-ceilinged basement, harshly but sparsely lit. Pipes wended in dank metallic pathways overhead; dust had collected in places Galinda had never even considered it could. However, a clean path was trodden into the old wood floor. Elphaba trailed her finger along a particular crack in the wall, rubbed smooth by years of that repeated action. All the girls could smell was wood and paper and faint mildew, the old-building musk that for Elphaba was more of a home than any place she’d ever spent the night. The way forward was intestinal. Each turn and junction was demarcated by a slightly different slant of the floors. 

“That’s the way backstage,” Elphaba explained, gesturing to where the musicians’ path finally split from their own. She led Galinda around the opposite corner and ducked her head under a particularly tarnished pipe. “You’d never be able to guess how many scrolls have been nicked by that one,” she said ruefully. “Take all the instruments in Oz and multiply it by ten, I bet.”

 _Scrolls?_ Galinda wondered. “How do you scratch paper?”

“No, my sweet. Scrolls. The little curly bit at the top of a violin, or viola, or cello, or–”

“Okay, okay,” Galinda grinned, interested but not _that_ interested. “Are we almost to our seats, or…”

Elphaba’s eyes grew wide. “S-seats? Um… sure, yes. Not much more walking to do, anyways.”

“Y’know,” Galinda squinted at her green girl, who was steadily avoiding her gaze, “that answer doesn’t exactly inspire a whole lot of confidence in me.” Elphaba closed her eyes and squared her shoulders as if she was bracing for some horrible impact.

“Well,” she said, her smile strained, “do you recall when I said we would be climbing?”

“Oh, no.”

“Unfortunately. Well, at least for you. I like climbing.” Elphaba pointed at a Munchkin-sized maintenance hatch about three feet off the ground. “So kick off those heels, my sweet, if you must.” She waved a hand over the hatch’s handle and smiled once she heard it click open. Hoisting herself into the opening, she sat on the lip and watched amusedly as Galinda hurried to remove her shoes. Elphaba’s cloak, as much as the blonde enjoyed wearing it, kept falling over her hands or obscuring her vision.

“Don’t look so smug, you mean green thing,” Galinda sighed. Finally, she held the shoes in one hand and the bottom of the cloak in the other. “I don’t know how you can move in this, constantly.”

“Well, for starters, it doesn’t come down _quite_ as far on me,” Elphaba sniggered. “I’ll take it back if it’s really bothering you.”

“No, no, it’s fine.” She turned her head and buried her nose in the fabric. “Smells like you,” she giggled. “You can hold these, though.” Elphaba grabbed the heels by their straps. “Not like that! Oh, be more gentle.”

Elphaba sighed, but adjusted her grip. “Are you coming?” She twisted herself back into the hole and pressed herself against the first ladder of many.

“On my way,” Galinda chirped, scrambling after her green girl.

They navigated a veritable cascade of ladders, and Galinda finally had to request a break as they stepped out onto a sort of metal catwalk. It was well-hidden from the audience view, but was situated directly over the stage and vibrated a little too much for either of their liking.

“I’m glad you haven’t been complaining about all the activity,” Elphaba hummed, chewing on her lip to prevent her excitement from shaking them clear down from the ceiling.

Galinda stretched her shoulders, wincing. “I got all that out of my system earlier,” she sighed. “And I’m a lady, after all; I’m not about to whine in the presence of a gracious host. I’m going to ask again, though: how are we getting into the audience from here?”

Elphaba looked down and away. “Well… we’re not.”

Galinda stared at her green girl and willed herself to not yell. “Elphie! Elphie, Elphie, Elphie, what–” she clenched her fists and exhaled, forcing a smile, “what _ever_ do you mean?”

“We’ll be sitting up there.” Galinda’s eyes followed where the long finger indicated, all the way to what appeared to just be a curtain.

“I have no idea what you’re pointing at,” she whispered.

“Maintenance walkway,” Elphaba explained.

“And people won’t be able to see us?”

“From experience, they absolutely cannot. Tried, true, and tested.” The blonde nodded, but in the manner of someone who expects a _lot_ more of an answer. “Alright, fine. I broke in here one day with Calligan and made him stand on the stage and tell me if he could see me while I waltzed around up there.”

“Reckless,” Galinda murmured. “But I’m not surprised.”

“Well, how would you spend _your_ time if your friend had a two-hundred-seventy degree range of motion with his neck?”

“Good point.” She stared back out at the audience. “Wait, can they see us now?”

“Nobody’s looking,” Elphaba reassured her. “We should get moving, though, if you’re well and rested up.” Galinda nodded, and they proceeded onward.

As they navigated the complex hidden system of catwalks, the audience grew more and more animated. Seats filled, people talked, purses and jackets shuffled, and the two young concert-goers climbed higher and higher.

Galinda immediately laid herself as flat as possible when Elphaba announced that they had arrived.

“You’re not going to fall,” the green girl sighed. “Sit up.”

“And how do you know that?” Galinda squeaked.

“Again, experience. If I wanted to run around up here, I could. I won’t, of course. That’s not proper concert etiquette.” She slid down the wall until she was seated, cross-legged, eyes glued to the stage. Galinda inched closer to her and did manage to drag herself upright, but nestled tightly into Elphaba’s side and clung there. Elphaba said nothing more and curled an arm around her blonde, anchoring her in place as the lights dimmed.

The green girl tensed in anticipation as the first musicians shuffled to their stands through rows of chairs. “Look! That man, right there!” she hissed, pointing at a beige Rat in a charming waistcoat. After tenderly maneuvering a cello through the limited space, he took his place as principal. “First-chair virtuoso _and_ one of the first Animals to ever join the orchestra. He taught me nearly everything I know about music.” Her unoccupied arm snapped through the air, gesturing at various performers. “Oh, and her? Yes, the lady in the different-colored dress; she’s the soloist tonight. You know what instrument she’s playing?”

Galinda’s eyes widened as she tried to recall the list Elphaba had spouted earlier. “V-viola?”

“Violin. Close enough,” Elphaba sighed. “Well, actually, no. Not close at all. See, the viola is tuned up exactly an octave from the cello whereas the violin removes the C string — thus relegating the open G to its lowest note — and instead utilizes an E as its new highest open string. Funnily enough, the bass — or contrabass, if you’re really picky — is tuned in reverse order, basically. From lowest to highest, it’s E, A, D, G; so, fourths; and the violin is E, A, D, G from highest to lowest, which makes it fifths. Am I making myself clear?”

Galinda’s head spun. “Not exactly, no. Where’d the C go?”

“It’s still on the cello and viola, if that’s what you’re asking. A, D, G, C from highest to lowest for both of those.”

“Sure,” the blonde said, still trying to wrap her thoughts around the concept of a cello-playing Rat. “So what’s the difference between a viola and violin?” Elphaba groaned.

“The tuning. And the size. Oh, yeah! If you want to piss off a string player, just tell them you love how the big violin sounds. It’s the worst kind of question: stupid _and_ a waste of time, because then they have to ask you which ‘big violin’ you’re talking about. So, if I were you, I’d try and commit some of these names to memory.”

“But they both start with a V…” Galinda muttered.

“Yes! Their names — as well as the cello’s full name, _violoncello_ — are derived from the old-time classification of bowed string instruments: viols. The Wizard’s written several books on the topic. Apparently, most of the musical knowledge we have comes from his world.” Elphaba wriggled in place. “I should get you to read some of them, they’re all very interesting. Very comprehensive; some even have fragments of scores! Not the original works, but close enough,” she jabbered.

Galinda simply said, “Wow.”

“Exactly. Anyways, do you want to hear about the pieces they’re performing tonight?” Nod. “Oh, wonderful. I do so enjoy presenting people with the illusion of choice,” Elphaba snickered. “Most of the names have been lost to time, but the general ideas still pervade and inspire the music. Anyways. Our soloist, true to her former-child-prodigy nature, is playing a concerto from a similarly-young, similarly-prodigious composer. His third, I believe. Then there’s a fantastic song about a river that always makes me a little nostalgic, a couple tidbits from an Opera of a faraway land; the ‘Funeral March’ movement from, according to my teacher, a very harsh and pained man. But it has a great cello part.

“And, do you see that piano?” Her eyes shone. “The conductor himself might play the first movement of my favorite piano concerto of all time. It starts out quite fierce, but as soon as he comes in– oh, you’ll just have to experience it.” The conductor in question suddenly raised his arms, and Elphaba jerked forward. Her entire body trembled. The orchestra began to play.

The soloist made eye contact with each principal musician and gave them all a cheeky grin before launching into the most dainty, cheerful, yet attention-commanding song Galinda had ever heard. Sure, she’d been around smaller string ensembles, mostly at upscale gatherings, but they’d always very much been background noise or even nuisances. This, though — flutes swooped up to high registers like the birds they so sought to imitate; the low strings galloped along, the Rat’s tail flicking subconsciously in time with the music; the violin hopped, flipped, and soared through lyrical and technical passages alike. It was over far too soon.

Galinda clapped with the rest, but Elphaba screwed her fingers into her ears and drummed her boots against the wood as vigorously as she could. She produced a fantastic racket that rose even slightly above the applause, loud enough that a few musicians’ heads turned. They all collectively glanced upward; Elphaba, without a care, leaned out of her cover and waved. Seven smiles were simultaneously cracked; smiles of recognition, excitement, delight. She encouraged Galinda to poke her head out as well, and a bassoonist even chanced a discreet wave.

“Reckless,” Galinda said, for the second time that night.

“They all know I’m here,” Elphaba countered, “ah… and they’d never tell a soul. They’re just happy they didn’t have to sneak me in. That’s another long story that we don’t have time for right now. Look!”

Scarcely had the soloist concluded her bows when the conductor called the orchestra to attention once more. A flowing, arpeggiated flute entrance accompanied her exit, small pops of pizzicato syncing almost comically with her footsteps. The strings began to glide in time as well, seizing the feel of a river by the throat and compelling it off the page. Then, the melody. Woodwinds and violins cried out in crushing melancholy while the strings swelled, a quiet triangle adding the perfect glimmers of hope and yearning to return to simpler childhood times. The melody modulated, _surged,_ into a major key, drawing a small gasp from Galinda. The noise felt forbidden, a taboo interruption of the music, yet the torrent did not slow; it was not fast, per se, but nevertheless cascaded forward in tumbling swathes of emotion.

She glanced up during a small break in the overwhelming flow, a dance-like section, to find Elphaba frantically wiping her eyes under the flimsy guise of fixing her glasses. They looked at each other. Words failed them both. The music transitioned into a more romantic passage, violins taking hold of the almost-whining tone required to elicit passion in young lovers and fondness in old. The rest of the orchestra provided a billowing, dreamy texture. Elphaba swayed along to the rhythm.

The music waxed and waned, building up to a false climax and snatching it away at the last second in a fluttering descending scale. Instead, a low timpani roll segued back into the opening theme, quiet and tense. It repeated, almost note-for-note, until galloping brass spurred the entire orchestra forward one last time in a militaristic sprint to the finish. The timpani rang out, a thunderclap, in a perfect imitation of the eponymous River smashing against rocks, launching the strings into a final, major rendition of the main theme. The tempo picked up with gusto, extending a series of triumphant chords far past their limits. Finally, the River slowed; a tender, oscillating arpeggio caressed the remnants of the melody, and the piece concluded with two concise blasts of brass and percussion. 

The audience exploded with applause. How could they not? This time, the conductor relaxed for a moment, nodding to his troops as they all soaked up the praise. Elphaba clapped along, head tucked into her arms to block out the noise but still leave her hands available. She shivered, and felt a familiar something drape across her back.

“You cold?” Galinda mouthed, cuddling closer. Wide, definitely-not-damp eyes caught the light as Elphaba shook her head, although she welcomed the contact anyways. The next piece had already begun, a slow brass introduction undercut with fierce upper-strings tremolo. It jumped directly into a snappy, cocky-sounding piece that was so jarringly un-Ozian in origin that Galinda could barely take it all in at first. The percussion crackled with impish energy as the winds weaved a furtive melody through the popping castanets. _I could dance to this,_ she reckoned, already imagining a half-lit venue where everyone was playing a different social game and only the most cunning would come out on top. Her fantasies overshadowed one of the less-exciting movements, but she snapped back to attention when a singer entered over yet another foreign melody. It repeated with very little variation, but was enticing enough that she sat entirely entranced until the woman curtsied and sat back down. The final movement was quite the shift in tone: a bouncy, percussion-laden romp that provided a much-needed reprieve from all the strange melodic tensions of the previous hour. Cymbals and triangles crashed through the entire finale, littering the audience with levity and signalling an intermission.

Elphaba stretched her legs, leaning back against the solid wood of the Hall’s walls. Conversation drifted around her head and the shrouded shadows of ceiling beams and curtains danced in the half-light. If it wasn’t for the awe-struck blonde currently resting in her lap, she could’ve sat for hours past closing, marvelling at the way the moonrise warped reality once everyone was gone. Instead, she played with golden curls, watching the great sunspot of a conductor wipe his brow and consult the principal musicians about the score. 

Galinda nearly purred from the attention. Even just the simple movement of Elphaba’s careful hand relaxed her. Between the music and bodily warmth, she felt as if she could sleep right there, nearly thirty feet up on a catwalk. Just as her eyes began to slide closed, she was nudged upright.

“Not just yet, my sweet,” her green girl murmured. “We have miles to go yet.”

“Haven’t we gone enough miles today?” she groaned. “My legs are sore.” Elphaba rolled her eyes, half-smiling.

“Silly girl.” She knocked their knees together. “Reckless and Ridiculous; that’s us.”

“And what a pair we are,” the blonde chuckled. She rested her head on Elphaba’s shoulder and resisted the urge to bury her face in the sharp collarbone. “Are they starting back up any time soon?”

“Why? Am I boring you?” Elphaba asked, dryly. “There’s _ever_ so much to talk about. Like the history of different types of wood and which is best for instrumental sound quality, for example. Or the rich, juicy secrets of the rosin industry.” She snorted. “I’m being sarcastic, if it wasn’t obvious.”

“I appreciate the clarification,” Galinda said, mildly snarky in return. “Of course I’d love to hear about wood and… what even is rosin? Sap, right?”

“Full marks, my sweet,” Elphaba replied, genuinely impressed. “Well, mostly. There’s some chemicals and whatnot, but it’s sap at the core and pitch when it’s dry.” Her little tree joke didn’t quite make it off the ground, but it was of minute consequence. Galinda somehow found her funny regardless. “And yes, intermission will be over very soon.” They fell silent, fabric interleaved between their nest of limbs. Elphaba found herself plucking at the hem of Galinda’s sundress.

“Aw, don’t do that,” the blonde gently chastised. She slipped her hand under Elphaba’s. “Much better.”

“Sap.” But the green girl was still compelled to try and hide a blush.

Both the audience and orchestra had settled back into their seats, awaiting the conductor’s signal. He gave them patrons one last sweeping glance, pivoting on his feet in an almost comical manner, and dropped the façade immediately. Even from her distance, Galinda saw his shoulders square and his posture become more severe. After his gesture, a mournful brass chord rang out, sucking all other noise from the room. As the strings entered, low and dark, neither girl chanced even a loud breath. Funeral March was certainly an appropriate moniker.

A driving polyrhythm kicked up about a minute or two in, easing the transition between such a tense atmosphere and its hopeful, wind-carried B-section. The levity was undercut by several tense moments of dissonance, though, and the inevitable return to the opening theme left something hanging in the air akin to an aural tapestry. Even an untrained ear could pick out the different sonic threads and motifs that the composer had woven into the work. It cycled through light and dark like a fast-spinning planet, teasing climaxes in both minor and major sections before ultimately resolving in the same grave manner it had started. The final chord was split up between all sections, layering shreds of melody over a staunch, unchanging drone. The audience applauded out of respect rather than awe.

Elphaba began to gather her wits about herself, and almost declared that she was ready to leave before she caught a very distinct motion in her peripheral vision. Musicians were parting the sea of chairs, and a few were assisting in dismantling the conductor’s podium. Her mouth fell open; she motioned to Galinda, who was on the verge of standing.

“ _Sit down,_ ” she implored. “What I told you they might do, the piano concerto? They’re doing it. They’re doing it!” She wrung her hands, holding in a squawk of delight, and instead pulled her knees up to her chest. The audience chattered below.

Galinda sat cross-legged and smoothed her skirt. “So, why did some of the musicians not play in all of those pieces?”

“Different orchestration, of course. Would you want a piccolo at your funeral? I thought not.” Elphaba shook her head, causing a few strands of hair to come loose from her ponytail. “Personally, I wouldn’t want a piccolo anywhere near me whether I was alive _or_ dead.”

“Was that actually… funeral music?”

“No, just a symphonic movement. Why? Already planning for that, are we? I can make it happen, provided I’m still able to hold a bow.”

Galinda was quiet as the statement sank in. “Wait a minute. You _play_ an instrument?” Elphaba stared at her, dumbfounded.

“Of _course_ I do. What did you think I meant when I pointed at a cellist and said ‘oh, he taught me everything I know about music?’”

“You know a lot about a lot of things!” She caught an eye roll for that. “I mean– what, two weeks ago? You told me how swords are made. That doesn’t automatically mean you: one, _are a blacksmith,_ and two, actually know how to swordfight.”

“Semantics,” Elphaba grumbled. “Anyways, yes. And before you ask, I’m not playing for you.”

“Aww, why not?” Galinda gave her best pout, going so far as to rest her chin on her hands.

Elphaba flushed and looked away. “I just… don’t want to, is all.” She glanced back. “Oh, stop begging. You know I don’t fall for that. You also know that I like you too much to make a ‘bitch’ joke, but if push comes to shove…” 

The blonde dropped her act, looking supremely disappointed. “But,” she tried again, “why _not?_ ”

“Acute amnesia is a very pressing health concern, my sweet.” _End of discussion._ Galinda sighed, deflating back onto Elphaba’s lap.

“You are so _difficult_ sometimes, ya know?”

“I may have heard that once or twice. Although we do seem to be in the business of forgetting things tonight,” Elphaba snickered, bouncing her right leg. Galinda glared up at her good-naturedly.

“I swear, one of these days you’ll rattle my head right off.”

“Perhaps I could shake some memories loose while I’m at it? Hey– ow!” Elphaba barked out a laugh, fending off a series of swats. “No more of that, my sweet. I’m only teasing.” She wrapped her fingers around the blonde’s hand and bonked it with her forehead. They smiled at each other in such a cloyingly saccharine manner that Elphaba would have scoffed had she seen anyone else replicate it. Not to mention in public. _Going soft, aren’t you,_ some hazy voice droned to her. “Oh, I don’t mind,” she mumbled.

“Talkin’ to yourself again, Elphie?” Galinda chuckled.

“And what of it?” She used their combined hands to push her glasses up her nose. “I’m a sparkling conversationalist.” That elicited an actual laugh.

“That’s the spirit!” Galinda hauled herself upright and gasped. Somehow, as the girls had been lost in each other, the orchestra had finagled just enough space for the massive piano. It sat where the conductor’s podium had been, forcing a few violinists to stand at the very back of the stage. The blonde glanced back at Elphaba, whose eyes had grown wide as saucers.

“ _They got a new piano,_ ” she whispered in awe, turning to her blonde. “ _It’s gonna sound so damn good._ ”

“I’ll take your word for it.” Emphatic nod; head twitch; small, happy growl.

Setup was complete, and a young woman entered the stage from the left wing. She stepped onto the modified podium, turning to the audience and bowing before shaking a few hands. Flipping open the fifth and final score, she fixed her awaiting gaze on the piano. The conductor-turned-pianist nodded to his surrogate, and she began the piece with one striking, determinative gesture of the baton. 

Horns called to the back of the Hall in their typical martial manner, entrance punctuated by their peers’ titanic harmony. Clutching Galinda’s hand, Elphaba leaned so far forward that she was in danger of tumbling off of the catwalk. These first few introductory bars were certainly powerful, yes, but the real treat was just around the — _WHAM!_ A fantastic barrage of chords burst through the swathes of waltz; the piano brightened the room as it rang out with newfound light, a shining example of melopoeia cultivated through years of harmonic study. A javelin of pure, concentrated euphoria lodged itself in Elphaba’s chest, and she beamed so hard she squinted. Galinda leaned into her side once again, warming her goosebumps, and Elphaba was certain that this was the most happiness she’d ever been allowed to feel.

The piano wandered off on a little virtuosic tangent, and the girls turned to look each other in the eyes. They drew nearer still, foreheads touching, noses only a shiver away from bumping together. _So close._

“This is the most fun I think I’ve ever had,” Elphaba rasped. The pianist’s runs of scales decrescendoed, foreshadowing the orchestra’s return. “Thank you.” Her words were barely more than a breath.

“What are you thanking _me_ for?” the blonde murmured. With trembling fingers, she tucked that fallen strand of hair behind her green girl’s ear.

“Oh, Galinda–” Elphaba felt a hand cup her jaw. Her breath hitched. “ _Everything._ ”

And, on that triumphant orchestral entrance, the return of the majestically romantic theme; on the eve of the eve of Elphaba’s birthday; on a maintenance walkway thirty feet up, with no hats to hide them, they met.

The kiss was light, sweeter than honeysuckle and rainwater after a gentle storm. Soft, for sure, but present; completely unable to be misconstrued as an accidental brush of lips. Purposeful. Intentional. And awful and perfect and tender and bold and reckless and ridiculous. And good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AHAHAHAAAA 10 CHAPTERS AND I FINALLY MANAGED TO MAKE EM SMOOCH
> 
> im so happy :,)
> 
> songs described, in order:  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhQAtkXOK6o  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3G4NKzmfC-Q  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cHkCnFMK9Q  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAMndXZV6Y4  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BcPY0SZog7Y


	11. Mercurial

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> have fun!! because after this is when things start going downhill!!  
> (also thanks to sam, aneesa, max, and kelly for being my consultants on how to format the flashback lmao)

They parted noiselessly, completely oblivious to the continued music in the background. Elphaba could taste the remnants of Galinda’s favorite lip balm, some vaguely fruity flavor from a Gillikin boutique. She’d worn it once, but would never admit that she had licked it all off within fifteen minutes because the sweetness had awoken some primordial desire for glucose within her. That was what she told herself was her motivation as she, in an uncharacteristically brazen move, leaned back in. Only to remember that she really had no idea where to put her hands. They were currently bunched in the fabric on her thighs, but in all the novels she’d read, hand placement was emphasized for maximum romantic potential. Was she overthinking this?

Galinda opened her eyes to the sight of Elphaba poised about halfway between them, glasses slightly foggy and gnawing at her bottom lip. 

“Elphie?” she whispered, eyes serious. Unsmiling. She was wondering far too much about far too many things, and the elation that bubbled just beneath her surface was overshadowed by a pressing need to confirm that all this was… well, _real_.

The green girl jumped. “Y-yeah?” she stammered, hurriedly scrubbing a lens with her sleeve. Galinda waited for her to compose herself. As her vision refocused, she gradually took in her blonde’s grave expression: a downturned mouth and furrowed brow, all indicative of disappointment; anger. Or hatred. 

Fear. Unadulterated fear leached into Elphaba’s psyche, leadening her limbs and leaving her breath ragged. The only thing she dreaded more than being forced to contend with her own mind was loss. Not death — no, she’d dealt with that plenty and had come out only a little worse for the wear. This loss would be fresh and savage and alive, tearing at her heart in the form of a blue-ice glare or a harsh whiff of perfume. “Oh. Oh, no. No, no, no, n- _ngh!_ ” She wrenched backwards, boots scrabbling on the wood. Her brain was moving faster than her mouth could; what would normally have been something along the lines of “I didn’t mean to, I fucked up, I’ll leave now,” instead came out as a muddled, unintelligible torrent of syllables seasoned with a massive dose of regret. Several seconds dragged by. She felt like throwing up, but what message would _that_ send? The only thing worse than your best friend kissing you would be if they subsequently vomited. But that silly little thought, funnily enough, was what grounded her. A stabilizing mantra, _get out get out get out,_ rang through her head as she made a beeline to the nearest fire escape. She took a moment to thank the government for complying with building regulations, and slipped out into the night.

Galinda, hands still warm from where she had been holding Elphaba, sat stunned for a good few seconds. Her nose scrunched up, her bottom lip quivered, and she followed the green girl’s path as quickly as her mild fear of heights allowed.

She flung the door open, heels clanging on the metal platform as she made her way over to where Elphaba stood. The taller girl had pressed herself to the railing, nearly in danger of toppling right over it. Her eyes were squeezed shut as tightly as her hands were latched onto the bar. Tense. She did not look — only flinched — when she heard Galinda’s approach.

The blonde squared her shoulders, crossed her arms, opened her mouth — and immediately burst into tears. Elphaba’s eyes shot open. She did not move. One plaintive, desperate warble made its way through the whirring bloodrush in her ears: 

“Why?”

Galinda clapped a hand over her mouth right after she spoke, stifling further noise, and shrank away. Her thoughts were whirling past, each more terrible than the next. She had learned to read Elphaba better than anyone, so where had she gone wrong? Blazing lashes of shame and rejection scalded her neck, soothed by her tears in a vicious cyclical process of sadness. _Ugly,_ she castigated herself, after a particularly wet snivel. It was a rather pathetic display, she thought, and certainly unbecoming, but she found she could not stop.

Minutes and minutes and minutes corroded away. Her hands became soaked, and her already-weary muscles ached anew with each wave of shuddering. A chill pricked her fingers as a sudden night wind blew over their wetness, but another round of warmth soon followed; her body couldn’t decide whether to be cold or hot. She felt low. Very low, in fact. The building breathed down her neck and Elphaba loomed in her blurry peripheral vision, gaunt and silent and wound so tight that Galinda could taste a static crackle in the air. It sizzled on her arms in a false shiver. It did not help to calm her down. She tried to breathe slowly, evenly, but unlike the amphibians she had encountered yesterday, her lungs were only equipped to handle one element. Eschewing manners, she dragged her arm under her nose and choked down a sob, gazing up at the night sky. She tilted her head and stars winked back at her, safely nestled in their constellations. Together. The starlight warped into spikes of white as new-sprung despair coiled around her heart.

“You want to know why?” Elphaba blurted, hoarsely. Galinda jumped. “You’re angry, aren’t you? And why would you be angry, had I not done something wrong?”

“ _An-gry?_ ” Galinda’s voice shattered on the word. “El-Elphie–” she drew a breath that was almost polyrhythmic, courtesy of her traitorous diaphragm, “why would I _ever_ be-be angry?”

Elphaba finally turned, having completely given up on masking her emotions, and the blonde cringed at the raw hurt starkly etched into every angle of her face. She opened and closed her mouth a few times, fragile words denaturing into syllables and then individual letters before dissolving completely on her tongue. She hugged herself so tightly she could barely breathe, and fiddled with the hem of her shirt until the proper phrase finally arrived. 

“That’s what _I’m_ asking! I don’t know!” she whimpered. “And, frankly, I am very confused!” She looked away and kicked the railing, exhaling sharply.

Galinda began to collect herself, strangely reassured by the fact that Elphaba seemed equally afraid of _her_ reaction. She kicked her heels off and walked gingerly to her green girl’s side, leaning over the still-vibrating rail and watching a few final tears tumble down into the dark.

“D-do you… do you think what we did is wrong?”

“ _Never._ ” The answer was immediate, flying out of Elphaba’s mouth before she knew she had spoken. “But that doesn’t mean–” she gulped, fighting the unsteadiness in her voice. “Do _you?_ ”

In response, Galinda flung her arms around Elphaba’s shoulders, dragging the taller girl down a bit. She had started to cry again, softly, and Elphaba’s vision began to tunnel.

“Galinda!” Her voice skipped an octave. “Tell me. Good or bad, I n-need you to tell me, I need you to say it.” She wrenched herself out of the blonde’s grip and held her at arm’s length. “If you hate me, I’ll g-go; I’ll never bother you again, I’ll stay ah… a-away and keep to myself and never tell anyone what just happened. But for the love of Oz, you _have_ to say something, because whatever you’re doing right now, _I just don’t understand!_ ” High, panicked. She sounded like a child, and she hated it. “S-so… so, so, _so,_ _help_ me!” Her eyes had screwed shut again. One hand mindlessly wrung her own cloak on its borrower’s shoulder.

Galinda moved forward and grasped Elphaba’s upper arms, squeezing purposefully. “I don’t hate you, I’m not mad at you, and I h…hope you can say the same for me,” she wavered. Elphaba did not seem to relax physically, but the wind slowed to a gentle breeze and Galinda’s hair no longer stood on end. She felt a tug on her left sleeve, and turned to catch sight of a green hand making practiced gestures. _Letters,_ she recalled. A few months ago, Elphaba — in a surprising act of immense patience — had spent multiple hours teaching her the alphabet. She’d invested even more time into committing it to memory; although, until now, she had never quite understood why.

_Y-O-U-A-R-E-A-L-R-I-G-H-T-?_ Slowly, so Galinda could catch every symbol.

“Yes.” She was too emotionally fried to say much more.

_I-A-M-S-O-R-R-Y_ Elphaba’s hand trembled through the last word.

“As am I.” Galinda took Elphaba into her arms much more calmly than she had before. The green girl’s heartbeat drove through her ribcage like a railway spike, frantic as a rabbit and certainly unsustainable. “Wanna sit down?” A strained hum of assent.

They laid on their backs instead, watching slits of moon glisten from within a solitary cloud. Elphaba pressed herself into Galinda’s side as if she had been glued there, and the blonde was struck with tenderness at her friend’s insatiable hunger for closeness. 

She recalled the first time they’d hugged — really, truly hugged, a separate instance from any of her moments of excited handsy-ness. 

———————————————————————————————————————

Post-Ozdust Fiasco, the girls had grown to understand — and perhaps even tolerate — each other, and they had lived in relative harmony for a record three consecutive weeks. However, squabbles were second-nature to them as well, and they hadn’t quite established where boundaries laid. Elphaba’s socially-clueless nature did her _no_ favors in that department, and an ill-timed snide remark about something-or-other had spiraled into an atrocious, feverish, multiple-hour debate that had cost both of them their voices for a good day and a half. _I hate you! You’re godawful!_ Galinda had screamed, taking perverse delight in how the green girl flinched away from her.

But even after her sore throat had cleared up, a jagged unease had permeated the room for days. Teasing Elphaba in the hallways had long since lost its luster, and Galinda had instead sat despondently on the sidelines while the others drove little barbs of malice into the green girl’s psyche. Elphaba had trudged off, as she was wont to do, but not before she made direct, piercing eye contact with her roommate that froze the blonde in place.

Galinda had returned to the room after excusing herself under the pretense of a stomachache, and had proceeded to lie on her bed and wallow in melancholy for hours. She did not see Elphaba until well after midnight; the green girl had entered quietly, gently closing the door without so much as a click and tiptoeing through her normal nightly routine. Galinda had watched it all through half-closed eyes.

_I suppose I_ _did_ _start it, didn’t I?_ Elphaba had muttered as she had padded to the bathroom, heaving a sigh and glancing over her shoulder at the blonde. Her expression had held no trace of the past few days’ vitriol, and the slumbering guilt in Galinda’s chest had begun to stir once more. Once the bathroom door had slid shut, also noiselessly, the blonde had immediately arisen.

She had shifted to face the bathroom as soon as the water had stopped running, finally prepared to apologize; however, Elphaba had opened the door clearly expecting nothing and no one. The sheer loneliness emanating from the green girl’s very being had tied Galinda’s tongue. For a very long time, they had been unable to do anything but stare at each other, Galinda huddled in her nest of bedcovers and Elphaba framed by the faint bathroom light like a sad, underexposed photograph.

Hopping out of bed, Galinda had finally taken action, unwilling to allow the awkward silence to stretch any further lest she lose her nerve. She had strode over, looked up at the green girl with a determined expression, and had enveloped her in a gentle, drowsy-soft hug.

Elphaba had shaken like a leaf, unaccustomed to touch but so desperately craving it that her body had not a single clue how to react. But when Galinda had tightened her hold, securing them together, the unfamiliar rush of near-ecstasy had left her clinging to the blonde in equal parts confusion and relief…

———————————————————————————————————————

A rousing round of applause and muffled cheering extricated Galinda from her memory. She slowly returned to the world, feeling Elphaba clutch her torso a little tighter.

“That was a bit of a rollercoaster, huh?” A dry, wry laugh.

“Quite the… misunderstanding,” Elphaba mumbled. The words came slowly; she was wading through molasses-thoughts. She readjusted her glasses with her unoccupied hand.

The girls dragged themselves upright, and Galinda climbed into Elphaba’s lap. Elphaba rested her chin on a cloak-clad shoulder and curled her body around her blonde. Her heart had slowed; she felt safe, calm. Content. She reached up and fiddled with the cloak-strings out of habit.

“So…” Galinda ventured, catching the green fingers between both of her palms and bestowing a tender nuzzle upon them, “we kissed.”

Elphaba stiffened. “Mhm.” Unconsciously, her right leg began to bounce.

“Personally, I rather enjoyed it.” Elphaba hurriedly looked away, but squeezed Galinda’s hand in assent. “And I’d quite like to kiss you again, if you don’t mind.” She wriggled around to face the green girl. “Though, it’s all up to you; I promise.” Elphaba mulled that over, shyly twisting the hem of her shirt, and a shade of a smile settled in her eyes. Inhaling sharply to steel her nerves, she nodded. Galinda nodded back.

“Per… perhaps… not so quickly?”

“Of course.” They touched foreheads and inhaled concomitantly, leaning further into each other; Galinda scooped Elphaba’s hands up and placed them on her shoulders without a second thought. “I mean, if you’re really super nervous, I could just, uh,” the blonde squirmed, realizing her proposal was a bit silly, “I could just talk you through it? If you want?”  
“No.” Elphaba snorted quietly. “But I a-appreciate the sentiment.”

“Okay!” Galinda chirped. “Just don’t be nervous! There’s nothing to be nervous about!” Her smile grew strained, and she was beginning to sweat.

“I’m n–” Elphaba didn’t even bother to try and finish the lie.

“Oh, no, I’m talking to myself. I _know_ you’re nervous.” She giggled and grimaced. “Sorry.”

“ _Galinda._ ” Elphaba nearly growled, and the blonde fell silent, blushing. “We’ve already ta-talked… so much tonight. Ah…and I want–” Elphaba paused, willing the length of the sentence not to drain her, and flapped her left hand to release some of her ever-present tension. “ _I w-want this._ But I can’t–”

“I know.”

“Do you?”

“You’re scared and you’re stuck, and you can’t fathom what would happen if someone found out because the world just might come crashing down around you. If I had to hazard a guess,” Galinda spouted. “And the only difference between us is that you just haven’t said that out loud.” Elphaba sat still for a moment, processing the words, and cringed seconds later.

“In so many words… I suppose, yes.”

“And you’re not just saying that to hurry this along?”

“Didn’t I req-request… trepidation?”

“True.” It was remarkable how they, even while intensely strung-out and nearly speaking into each other’s mouths, could so abruptly fall back into a normal conversation. “So… what do you want?” Galinda’s voice had slid down from the stratosphere in a matter of milliseconds. It was low (relatively, at least) and anticipatory, and Elphaba unconsciously tilted her head, eyes half-closed. She was struggling valiantly to remain lucid.

Her blonde chuckled. “I think I can manage that. Are you ready?”

“ _Yes. Please._ ”

So Galinda kissed her, hard, and she forgot her name for a minute but that was alright. She was very warm. Someone made a small, embarrassing noise, and someone else smiled hard enough to move them apart. She blinked owlishly, pupils blown like a cat’s and face messily flushed.

Galinda shook her head, still beaming. “You liked that, huh?” The green girl fell forward onto her collarbone with a shaky attempt at a scoff, although the stilted exhale somewhat ruined its effect. Galinda stroked her back and laid a cheek on her hair, and for the second time that night was struck with a truly unladylike aspiration. She began to contemplate. _Maybe I shouldn’t… but what if I did anyways?_ Her left hand twitched closer to the ponytail, her masterpiece. The hair coiled around her fingers, raven-silk, and she hesitated only a moment before gently pulling at it.

The sound that left Elphaba’s body was a truly impressive post-verbal conglomeration of a gasp and a whimper. She spasmed, clapping one hand over her mouth and exponentially tightening her grip on Galinda’s shoulder with the other. If she had been trembling at all before, it was nothing compared to her current state: hunched over, kiss-dazed, and flooded with endorphins, she vibrated where she sat like a just-rung bell.

“ _T-too much–_ ” she somehow managed to wheeze, arm flinging itself akimbo in an attempt to calm her down. Galinda immediately released her.

“Did I hurt you?” the blonde cried, although she knew that probably wasn’t the case. Elphaba shook her head, but asked for her cloak back in breathy, broken phrases.

Its familiar weight brought her some immediate peace of mind, and she took a few stabilizing breaths before nodding firmly. “I’m ah… alright.” She glanced away, blush flaring up again. “Wouldn’t mind– _ahem!_ Wouldn’t m-mind doing that again,” she mumbled. 

“Perfect,” Galinda declared, grabbing her by the lapels. At the action, a timid half-smile crossed the green girl’s face, and Galinda followed her overwhelming instinct to simply kiss it off. Elphaba went slightly limp in her arms. “Hey, now, stay awake,” she chided, cupping her sharp jaw and patting her cheek. The green girl rolled her eyes good-naturedly.

_I am awake,_ she tried to argue, but she didn’t quite remember to enunciate and it came out a jumbled mess of half-vocalizations. “You have kissed me stupid,” she articulated instead. Galinda giggled, standing up and glancing toward the wall.

“I’ve just had… an idea,” she said coyly, beckoning Elphaba over. “If you would just bear with me?” As soon as the taller girl arrived, Galinda pressed her to the brick and yanked her by the cloak into another kiss. Sure, the blonde had to stand on her tiptoes; and sure, Elphaba wasn’t bending down so much as her knees were on the verge of simply giving out, but they were enjoying themselves all the same.

The girls carried on long enough that the noise that finally separated them was the great slamming of the Concert Hall’s door. The crowd once again milled about in the roads, completely oblivious to anything transpiring overhead.

Elphaba, for one, was incredibly glad about that. She preferred to not be observed in moments such as these; panting, glasses askew, hair mussed, mouth slick and smeared with lip gloss, and generally looking far too debauched for what had actually occurred. Galinda, somehow, was virtually unchanged, lacking only the aforementioned lip gloss and sporting an exuberant twinkle in her eye. They sat together — for Elphaba had lost the use of her legs some time ago — in beatific silence, mesmerized by the dazzling night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sometimes i think i'm awful and completely devoid of empathy and then i write something like this and end up getting excited ON THEIR BEHALF aughhggh they're so happy and i'm so soft,,,,,,,,  
> anyways, drop a comment if you want, i love talking to people! constructive criticism is also appreciated, if you're brave enough (i'm definitely not. UNLESS someone specifically asks for it, so consider this my asking you :] )  
> but yeah, i hope you had fun reading and i hope your day (or night, more likely) is going well <3


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